Antony questions Cong reservation policy for CWC

NEW DELHI, DEC 22: In the backdrop of mounting pressure on Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to avoid elections and nominate the entire Congress...

NEW DELHI, DEC 22: In the backdrop of mounting pressure on Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to avoid elections and nominate the entire Congress Working Committee (CWC), senior party leader A.K. Antony has questioned the reservation policy in the party’s highest policy-making body on the grounds that it would unnecessarily divide the party on caste and community lines.

Antony is said to have pointed this out in a recent meeting with the party chief and suggested that she should nominate the entire 24-member body and give fair representation to all communities and regions. The party constitution, however, stipulates that the elections be held for half of the CWC, that is 12 berths.

Sonia had amended the party constitution in 1998 — to bring in reservation for women, dalits, tribals, backward classes and minorities — right upto the CWC level. In effect, this means that at least half the number of berths in the CWC will be reserved for these categories.

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A day-long AICC session has been scheduled for January 7 next year to constitute the new CWC, the first under Sonia’s leadership.

While expressing himself in favour of the party chief nominating the entire CWC, Antony reportedly took the view that CWC elections under the amended party constitution would lead to campaigning and lobbying for the votes of AICC members on caste, community and religious lines, encouraging a divide on these lines in the party which has always stood against casteism and communalism.

While Antony’s views have been appreciated by a section of the party leadership which wants to avoid elections, there are others who have joined the bandwagon by endorsing the suggestion that Sonia be authorised to nominate the entire CWC. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh yesterday supported the nomination move, asserting that Sonia had secured an overwhelming mandate in the party elections to be authorised to do so.

Even senior leaders like Madhavrao Scindia, who is considered the front-runner in the CWC elections, are now adopting a more flexible approach to the issue of nomination. Scindia told reporters today that he would go along with whatever the party leadership decided, adding that there was “no harm” if elections were held or, alternately, the Congress president was authorised to nominate the entire CWC.

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He asserted that the party had established its democratic credentials by holding elections to the highest post in the organisation which no other party had done. So, in this context, it was immaterial if there were elections or not for other posts.

The statements in favour of nominations have, however, not gone down well with several younger leaders in the party who have planned to contest for the CWC in the general category. They feel that all this is the result of the “manipulations” by the party’s old guard, which wants to keep its posts in the CWC intact.

It is no secret in party circles that the younger aspirants for the CWC, like Kamal Nath, P.R. Dasmunshi, Salman Khurshid and Suresh Kalmadi, who are in favour of an election, are ranged against their more senior colleagues such as Arjun Singh, Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy and N.D. Tiwari, who are pro-nomination.

While the final decision has been left to Sonia, party sources say that it would be very difficult for her to press for an election if the AICC passes a unanimous resolution authorising her to nominate the entire CWC.