Congress runs in my blood but this isn't the party I knew: Satyavrat Chaturvedi

Satyavrat Chaturvedi is a Member of Parliament (MP) and a seasoned Congress leader who has risen from the ranks. He was first elected for the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly way back in 1980 and since then, on several occasions, he has been elected as MLA, MP to both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, and has held several important positions in the party.

He is one of the most articulate voices in Congress and is known for his original thoughts. He comes from a family of freedom fighters and thinks that Congress is in his blood. In a candid chat with Sanjay Singh of Firstpost, he eloquently spoke of what ails the present day Congress, what is the way forward, and the way he perceives the leadership of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.

FP: The pictures out in your office is of the Congress’ who’s who. There is much talk of an old guard versus new guard conflict in Congress. If an organisational change is done accordingly, giving primacy of position to young guards, most leaders seen in those pictures will become history. Do you agree?
Chaturvedi: It never happens that way. In any party, there is always a mix of youthful energy and elderly experience. That combination is always needed. The old guard vs new guard debate is nothing new, this is not happening for the first time. This debate happened even during the times of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indiraji, Rajivji, and it so happened that both the groups had been adequately represented in the leadership. This trend will continue in the future as well.

Source: http://www.firstpost.com

Cong has lost confidence of people in Uttarakhand: BJP

With its hopes of wresting power in Uttarakhand dashed, BJP today lashed out Congress and Rahul Gandhi, saying he should not give sermons as his party has "murdered" democracy by "paying off" legislators and has "lost" the confidence of the people of the state. "Congress, which is a murderer of democracy, is undemocratic and is a champion of corruption, should not give sermons to BJP on democracy. Congress has lost the confidence of people of Uttarakhand by purchasing the majority in the state assembly," BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma alleged.

He said Congress has not just lost its MLAs, but also the confidence of the people of the state, who will give a "befitting" reply to it in the next assembly elections slated a few months away.

"The people will give a befitting reply to Congress for the insult heaped on them," he told reporters.

Sharma claimed the constitutional crisis in Uttarakhand was created because of Congress' "anti-people" policies and due to "anger" of its leaders against the party's central leadership.

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today termed Rawat's reinstatement as a victory of democracy and voiced hoped that the Prime Minister will "learn the lesson".

"They (BJP) did their worst. We did our best. Democracy won in Uttarakhand.

"Hope the PM learns the lesson that people of India and institutions built by our founding fathers will not tolerate murder of democracy," Rahul said on Twitter.

Attacking Rahul Gandhi, the BJP leader said, "Congress leadership does not meet its own leaders and Chief Ministers, but spends time with anti-national elements who raise anti-India slogans."

Sharma also questioned Rahul for his "silence" on the sting videos purportedly showing Harish Rawat and said "it was shameful" as Congress has "looted" the state.

The BJP leader also accused Rawat of having "sold out Dev Bhoomi" for saving his own chair in the state and for "paying off" lakhs and crores to legislators. "Congress is celebrating today as it is hoping to clean the muck of corruption that it is embroiled in.

"The sting videos have shown how Harish Rawat was paying his MLAs to save his own chair, which made it clear that he trying to sell Uttarakhand," he alleged.

Rawat yesterday won the trust vote in the Assembly and the Supreme Court today put its stamp on it, clearing the decks for his reinstatement.
It was a setback for BJP which had earlier claimed that Rawat would lose the trust vote and it will form government in the state. SKC RT

Source: TOI