AICC plenary to be an austere affair

Sitaram Kesri, Congress (I) president, inaugurating the two day National Council and Pradesh Youth Congress presidents meeting. Also seen in the picture are Satyajit Gaekwad, National Youth Congress (I) president (left) and Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress president Manjunath (right).

CALCUTTA, July 20: The three-day All India Congress Committee (AICC) plenary session being organised in the city from August 8, after a gap of 14 years, will be a quiet affair and sans the extravaganza that usually marks such occasions.

There will be cut-outs of party leaders, welcome arches, hoardings, posters, but everything would be on a moderate scale, even though the plenary will be the last one to be held here this century, general secretary of the reception committee of the plenary session, Pradip Bhattacharya, said.

Without naming the rebel Congress MP, Mamata Banerjee, who had described it as a “multi-crore circus”, he had a dig at her saying there would be no extravaganza and austerity would be maintained during the session.

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Rajib Dev, heading the publicity sub-committee, said “Congress for progress, bring back Congress” would be the title slogan.

A procession will be taken out from Park Circus on August four, in which the culture of Bengal would be projected. The working president of the sub-committee, Madan Mitra, said troupes would present dances from Tagore dramas. The role of the Indian National Congress in the freedom struggle would also be depicted.