Rahul Gandhi interacts with Congress leaders in Puducherry

Party leader asks PCC to work out booth-level poll strategy

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday advised the Puducherry Congress Committee to work out a booth-level electoral strategy so that it successfully defends its “bastion” in the South in next year’s Assembly election.

Mr. Gandhi held a video-conferencing from New Delhi with Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy and senior leaders of PCC at the party headquarters as part of its preparations for the polls.

“Mr. Gandhi listened to all participants. He was basically trying to get feedback and informed us that he would convey the views of leaders to the Congress president. He wanted the PCC to concentrate on booth-level election management so that the party can retain the government and defend its bastion in the South,” PCC chief A. V. Subramanian told The Hindu.

According to a party functionary, the Chief Minister, who spoke first, gave an account of the party’s and that of its alliance partner’s performance in the last Assembly election and subsequent bypoll. The leaders also singled out the Thattanchavady bypoll where the Congress-DMK combine wrested the seat from the Principal Opposition All India N. R. Congress.

He also mentioned the “huge” victory of its candidate in the Lok Sabha poll.

The Chief Minister and Ministers explained to Mr. Gandhi about the “hurdles” created by the Centre and the Lt. Governor in fulfilling the party’s 2016 poll promises and how it planned to counter the anti-incumbency factor in the upcoming election, he said.

State Committee

The AICC, according to a PCC functionary, had started the preparatory works a few weeks ago, with the head of party’s data analytics Praveen Chakravarty getting feedback from the public as well the Congress workers.

PCC, on its part, had started the process to expand the State Executive Committee (SEC) from its present strength of 30. Each of the 30 constituencies would be split into two to make the SEC a 60-member body.

The process was completed for Karaikal South, Orleanpet, Kadirgamam and Thirubhuvanai, the functionary said adding a new body would be constituted by month-end.

“The effort is to give more social representation and divide the works in the constituency,” Mr. Subramanian said.

Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) V. Vaithilingam, Minister for Public Works A. Namassivayam, Minister for Social Welfare M. Kandasamy, Minister for Health Malladi Krishna Rao, Minister for Revenue M. O. H. F. Shahjahan and Minister for Power R. Kamalakannan attended the meeting.

Congress working committee member Ambika Soni, AICC in-charge for Union Territory Dinesh Gundu Rao also attended the video-conferencing from Delhi.

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