Rahul sets up 3 panels ahead of party plenary from March 16-18

New Delhi: With just half-a-month left for the party’s first plenary session under his leadership, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday constituted an organising committee, a drafting committee and its four sub-groups, and a constitution amendment committee which would be headed by senior leaders.

The plenary session of the party would be held in the capital from March 16 to 18.

The drafting committee will be chaired by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Mukul Wasnik would be its convenor, while AICC treasurer Motilal Vora is the chairman of the organising committee and party general secretary Oscar Fernandes its convenor.

Senior leader and Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad would chair the constitution amendment committee and Janardan Dwivedi would be its convener. Other members of the group include Ahmed Patel, P. Chidambaram, Mallikarjun Kharge and Kapil Sibal.

The drafting committee has 44 other senior party leaders as its members. It also has four sub-groups on political, economic affairs, international affairs and agriculture and employment.

Former defence minister A.K. Antony will be the chairman of the political sub-group and Selja its convenor, former finance minister Mr Chidambaram has been made chairman of the economic affairs sub-group with Jairam Ramesh as its convenor. Rajya Sabha member Anand Sharma would head the international affairs sub-group with Jyotiraditya Scindia as its convenor.

The sub-group on agriculture, employment and pove-rty alleviation would be headed by former Haryana CM B.S. Hooda and former MP Meenakshi Natarajan would be its convenor.

At the plenary session, the Congress leadership will brainstorm on the party’s strategy ahead of 2019 general elections and focus on its bid to oust the BJP from power.

The party will also discuss on its prospects in elections to key states of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh scheduled for later this year.

This would be the first plenary session under the presidentship of Mr Gandhi, after he took over the reigns of the party from his mother Sonia Gandhi in December last year.