Panaji: Congress asks senior leaders to make way for younger leaders

Panaji, Dec 13: The Congress in Goa on Saturday said that its high time that senior party leaders be ready to step aside and hand over the baton to the younger generation.

"We have to identify new leadership, nurture it by providing quality training and guidance and finally all the senior Congressman should be ready to step aside and hand over the baton to younger generation," Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Luizinho Faleiro told core workers here on Saturday.

The leader was addressing the two day long "Chintan Shivir" which began here today. Faleiro said the Shivir is being held at the backdrop of party's humiliating defeat in the 2012 Goa assembly polls and also recently held Lok Sabha polls.

"We have to understand what went wrong. Why the people of Goa which blessed the party all the times didn't give us mandate," said Faleiro.

He said Congress is vibrant and represents the idea of secular, just and inclusive India. "Some of the Congress leaders might have failed the party and few of our leaders may attempt to quit the party. We need to focus on youth and new blood to carry forward the message of Congress," he said.

The two day long introspection that began today would be addressed by All India Congress Committee observer Digvijay Singh on Sunday. Faleiro said the present state government in Goa has utterly failed to realise the poll commitments.

"The noise of achievements is heard, the ground realities are different. It had to its credit 30 months of only promises without any performance," he alleged.

PTI