Sonia Gandhi says task force will be set up to initiate reforms within Congress

Addressing the closing session of the party's three-day Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir' in Udaipur, Congress President Sonia Gandhi announced that the party will launch a 'National Kanyakumari to Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra' on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti on October 2 to prepare for upcoming assembly and Lok Sabha polls. She also informed that a task force will be set up to initiate reforms within the party.

"We will launch a 'National Kanyakumari to Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra' from 2nd October, Gandhi Jayanti. All of us young & all will be joining the 'Yatra'," Sonia Gandhi said.

She said that Congress has to find a way to accommodate senior leaders like her to easily participate without running out of breath. "We will overcome, that is our determination, that is our Nav Sankalp," she added. She also assured party workers that all recommendations in the group will be acted expeditiously. She said that a task force will be set up to initiate reforms within the Congress organisation.

The Congress on Sunday adopted a 'Nav Sankalp'-- a road map for wide-ranging reforms in the party organisation to make it battle-ready for the forthcoming assembly and general elections. The grand old party has also adopted the 'one-family, one ticket' formula with the rider that another family member seeking to contest polls should have worked in the party in an exemplary manner for at least five years. 

Congress' connection with people 'broken', we have to re-establish it: Rahul

Acknowledging that the Congess' connection with people has been broken, former party president Rahul Gandhi stressed that the connection has to be re-established using a yatra in October.

"Our fight is for ideology. We have to go to the people and sit with them, the connection the party had with people has to be re-established," he said.

Praising the frank discussions at the Shivir, the Wayanad MP said which other political party would allow this kind of a discussion where the party leadership is bluntly told what the Congress party feels. "Certainly, the BJP, and RSS would never allow such a thing," he said.

Asserting that India is a Union of States, Gandhi said, "It is critical for the union of the country that the states and the people are allowed to have a conversation. The only alternative to a conversation between the people of India is violence between people of India, he said.