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Tag: Kapil Sibal

  • Pegasus row: Kapil Sibal demands SC-monitored probe, white paper in Parliament by government

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Former IT minister and senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal Tuesday demanded a Supreme Court-monitored probe in the Pegasus snooping matter and a government white paper in Parliament explicitly stating whether the Israeli spyware was used by it or not.

    The Opposition has stepped up its attack on the government over the issue, while the Centre has categorically rejected all allegations of snooping, saying attempts were being made to “malign” Indian democracy.

    Addressing a press conference at his residence here, Sibal hit back at Home Minister Amit Shah for his remarks on Monday that allegations of surveillance were only aimed to humiliate India at the world stage, saying the “nation is not being maligned, but due to your government’s actions, the government is being maligned”.

    Referring to Shah’s ‘Aap Chronology Samajhiye’ comment, the Congress leader said, “We are understanding the chronology, I want to say to Amit Shah ji ‘Aap iski chronology samajhiye (You should understand the chronology of this matter), this was done between 2017-2019.”

    The probe should be Supreme Court-monitored like in the Jain Hawala matter in which there was a “continuing mandumus” (meaning, the Court keeping close watch on the probe), he said, adding “we cannot trust the agencies of this government”.

    Sibal also said that the proceedings should be in-camera so that everyone gets to know the truth.

    Asked about his party demanding a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee, he said it could be in addition to the Supreme Court-monitored probe, and added that he was speaking as a concerned citizen of India.

    The government should also present a white paper in Parliament and also clearly state whether it or its agencies deployed the spyware Pegasus.

    “The government should say that we have never used Pegasus but they have not said that. A big problem arises if the government has not done it or its agencies have not done it, then who has done it. NSO (the Israeli technology firm whose spyware is Pegasus) says it does not sell to anyone except government agencies,” Sibal said.

    “You say that you are bringing private data protection but you are doing data collection through Pegasus. This is a national security threat for having leaked data to an agency which has nothing to do with India,” he said.

    If the government or its agencies have intercepted a minister’s phone by introducing malware in his phone then it is a violation of the Official Secrets Act, Sibal said, in an apparent reference to Prahlad Singh Patel’s number listed as potential targets for hacking through the Israeli spyware.

    He also hit out at IT and Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for his statement in Parliament that in the past, similar claims were made regarding the use of Pegasus on Whatsapp and they were categorically denied by all parties, including in the Supreme Court.

    “He also said there was a hearing in the Supreme Court and in that all parties said that no such thing happened. I was the lawyer for WhatsApp, the chief justice asked orally when someone alleged that this was happening through Pegasus ‘if this was happening’ and I said, ‘ask the government’,” said Sibal, who was the Minister of Communications and Information Technology between January 2011- May 2014.

    The government has not stated till now whether such a thing was happening or and now the minister says all parties denied it, Sibal asserted, adding this amounts to breach of privilege as it is “false”.

    The government on Monday categorically rejected in Lok Sabha allegations of snooping on politicians, journalists and others using Pegasus software, asserting that illegal surveillance was not possible with checks and balances in the country’s laws, and alleged that attempts were being made to malign Indian democracy.

    An international media consortium reported on Sunday that over 300 verified mobile phone numbers, including of two ministers, over 40 journalists, three opposition leaders besides scores of business persons and activists in India could have been targeted for hacking through the spyware.

  • PM Modi has lost moral authority to rule, he failed to stand with people needing medical help: Kabil Sibal

    He also said that the toolkit issue is nothing but an attempt to #39;deploy forgery #39; to divert public attention from his government #39;s failures.

  • Citizenship to non-Muslim refugees: SC to hear IUML’s plea after two weeks 

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would hear after two weeks a plea challenging the Centre’s notification inviting non-Muslims belonging to Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and residing in 13 districts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab to apply for Indian citizenship.

    The matter came up for hearing before a vacation bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and V Ramasubramanian.

    Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner, said the Centre had filed a counter-affidavit on the issue on Monday.

    “The Union of India has filed a counter-affidavit yesterday. We need two weeks to file reply,” Sibal told the bench.

    The apex court said it would hear the matter after two weeks.

    In its affidavit filed in the top court, the Centre has said that its notification does not relate to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) and is a “mere delegation of power vested with the Central Government to local authorities.”

    The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has said that similar delegation of power has been permitted by the Central government in 2004, 2005, 206, 2016 and 2018 also and no relaxation whatsoever has been made in respect of the eligibility criteria between different foreign nationals which are laid down in the Citizenship Act, 1955 and rules made thereunder.

    “It is submitted that the notification dated May 28, 2021, does not relate to the CAA which has been inserted into the Act as section 6B,” the MHA said in the affidavit and added that it seeks to merely delegate the power of the Central government to the local authorities in particular cases.

    “The said notification does not provide for any relaxations to foreigners and applies only to foreigners who have entered the country legally as the Central Government used its authority under Section 16 of the Citizenship Act and delegated its powers to grant citizenship by Registration or Naturalisation to District Collectors,” the MHA said.

    The affidavit, filed in response to a plea by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), said the May 28 notification is merely a process of decentralisation of decision making aimed at speedy disposal of the citizenship applications of such foreigners as the decision will now be taken at the district or state level itself after examining each case.

    The IUML had recently moved the top court challenging the Centre’s notification inviting non-Muslims belonging to Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and residing in 13 districts in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab to apply for Indian citizenship.

    The application claimed that the Centre is trying to circumvent the assurance given to the apex court in this regard in the pending petition filed by the IUML challenging the constitutional validity of the provisions of the CAA.

    The CAA grants Indian citizenship to non-Muslim minorities –Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian — who migrated to India from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh till December 31, 2014, following persecution over their faith.

    IUML, in its plea, said that the Centre had during the course of hearing of its plea challenging the constitutional validity of CAA, submitted before the apex court and provided assurance that staying of the Amendment Act was not necessary since the rules of the Amendment Act had not been framed.

  • Congress needs widespread reforms to show it’s no longer in inertia, says senior leader Kapil Sibal

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Congress must bring widespread reforms across all levels of the organisation to show it is no longer in a state of inertia and to present itself as a viable political alternative to the BJP, party veteran Kapil Sibal said on Sunday.

    Sibal, who was among the G-23 leaders whose letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi last year demanding a meaningful overhaul of the party had triggered a storm, hoped the organisational polls, recently postponed in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, will “happen sooner than later”.

    In an exclusive interview to PTI, the former union minister acknowledged that at present there is no strong political alternative to the BJP but said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lost the moral authority to rule and the Congress can present an alternative due to the current mood in the country.

    He also noted that while forming committees to review election losses is good, it will have no impact unless remedies suggested are implemented.

    Noting that the party’s alliances with the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) in Assam and Indian Secular Front (ISF) in West Bengal were “not thought through”, Sibal said the Congress has failed to drive home the point that minority and majority communalism are equally dangerous for the country.

    He cited this as one of the reasons for the poor performance of the party in recent assembly polls.

    Amid defections of young leaders – Jyotiraditya Scindia and now Jitin Prasada – to the BJP, the former minister said “there is an urgent need to strike a balance between experience and youth.”

    He has earlier said that from “aaya ram, gaya ram politics, it has come to “prasada politics now” and asked whether Jitin will get the ‘prasada’ from the BJP, suggesting that leaders were moving out of the party to serve their political interests.

    “At present, there is definitely a void in terms of a strong political alternative. It is exactly in this context, that I had given suggestions for some reforms in my party so that the country has a strong and credible opposition.

    “But what comes out of it is not something for me to foretell. But I am sure, a time will come when the people of this country will decide what is good for them,” Sibal told PTI.

    The veteran added that India needs a resurgent Congress and the party needs to rope in the right people to drive its poll strategy so that it can build upon the failures of the government.

    “Victory of non-BJP parties in recent assembly elections has shown the chinks in the BJP’s armour in terms of its vulnerability to losing when faced with a stronger opposition,” he said.

    “India needs a resurgent Congress. But for that, the party needs to show that it is active, present, aware and is in the mood to engage meaningfully.

    “For this to happen, we will need to have widespread reforms at the organisational hierarchy both at the central and state levels to show that the party is still a force to reckon with and is no longer in a state of inertia,” he said.

    Exuding hope in the grand old party’s resurgence at a time of newly emerging political equations across India, Sibal said that despite a poor showing of the Congress electorally, the current mood in the country provides an opportunity for it to emerge as a viable alternative, owing to the party’s pan-India presence.

    “The Modi government’s inept handling of the pandemic and the resultant anguish among people across the country needs to be channelised.

    “The Congress has to take it upon itself to provide an alternative roadmap in the nation’s interest and I am sure, we will emerge victorious in this enterprise,” he said just two days after strategist Prashant Kishor met NCP chief Sharad Pawar in Mumbai, triggering speculation of a potential third front.

    Asked if the Congress had learnt its lessons from the Antony committee report after the 2014 Lok Sabha debacle, Sibal said the party had not been able to stress that all forms of communalism were dangerous.

    “The Antony committee set up by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi soon after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections had rightly pointed out that fighting the polls on secularism versus communalism plank hurt the Congress that was identified as pro-minority, resulting in substantial electoral gains for the BJP.

    “More importantly the Congress also failed to drive home the point that minority and majority communalism were equally dangerous for the country. In my view, the decision to ally with All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) in Assam and Indian Secular Front (ISF) in Bengal was not thought through,” said Sibal.

    When pointed out that he had sought urgent party elections in the letter to Sonia Gandhi and if he agreed with the postponement of the exercise, Sibal said, “On January 22, the CWC had met to discuss the schedule for electing the new party chief in May.

    It was deferred by a month owing to the Assembly polls.

    “The exercise is on hold at the moment because of the pandemic. I do hope it happens sooner rather than later.”

    The former union minister welcomed the constitution of a committee to review the party’s recent losses in West Bengal, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry, but added a caveat, “Setting up committees to analyse the reasons for any electoral debacle is welcome but unless the remedies suggested are accepted and acted upon, it will have no impact on the ground.”

    The panel headed by former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan has handed over its report to Sonia Gandhi with its recommendations, which the party will discuss internally.

  • Kapil Sibal slams fellow letter writer Jitin Prasada for switching to BJP, says it’s ‘politics of prasada’

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Kapil Sibal, a prominent member of the Congress’ group of 23 leaders who wrote to party chief Sonia Gandhi seeking organisational overhaul last year, on Thursday slammed fellow letter signatory Jitin Prasada for crossing over to the BJP and said it represented politics of “prasada” or personal gains.

    The veteran Congress leader also said hypothetically if his party thinks of him as “dead wood” or of no utility, he may think of leaving, but would never join the BJP, asserting that such a switch could only happen “over my dead body”.

    In an interview with PTI, Sibal said if Jitin Prasada would have left the party unhappy over the response of the leadership on the concerns raised by the letter writers that would have been his personal choice and he was entitled to leave, but wondered why he decided to join the BJP.

    “What is the rational basis for that except for ‘prasada (personal gain) politics. We see this happening around the country,” Sibal asserted.

    Asked about the reforms not being implemented which he along with 22 other leaders had sought from the party, Sibal said that is for the top political leaders to decide and that at this stage he has no comments to offer.

    “As long as we are in the Congress and we continue to embrace its ideology, I think all 22 of us, now that we are 22, and many more who were not part of the signed document will continue to raise our issues to strengthen the Congress and where we want the party to go and be the grand old party it was,” he said.

    “And if they tell me at any point in time that they don’t need me, I will decide what to do, but as I said I will not join the BJP over my dead body,” the senior Congress leader asserted.

    In a tweet earlier, Sibal had said the question is will Jitin Prasada get “prasada” from the BJP, or is he just a ‘catch’ for UP elections.

    In such deals if ‘ideology’ doesn’t matter changeover is easy, he tweeted.

    Slamming Jitin Prasada’s switch to the BJP and his hailing the saffron party, Sibal told PTI that the norm in politics now is “Prasada will go for prasada”.

    “From Aaya Ram Gaya Ram we are into ‘prasada (personal gain) politics. We saw this happening recently in West Bengal where en-masse people left the TMC and joined the BJP in the hope that they will contest on a BJP ticket and win because Amit Shah was claiming 200 plus for the BJP. When they faced defeat, they all want to go back to the TMC,” Sibal said.

    ‘Aaya Ram Gaya Ram’ was an expression used widely in politics in the 1990s referring to the frequent floor-crossing and switching of parties.

    Hitting out at switchovers by leaders to the BJP in various states, Sibal said all this shows that there is no concept of principled politics in this country as witnessed in West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka, among other places.

    “It is all about prasada. How much prasada you are going to get, no regard for ideology. My criticism of what he (Jitin) has done is not that he has left the party; I cannot criticise him for that, that is his personal decision. But how does he justify to himself joining the BJP,” he said.

    “This is a party he (Jitin) abused for decades. He himself said that his association with the Congress and its ideology was for several decades. How then does he justify joining an ideology which he has opposed for three decades,” Sibal asked.

    The former Union minister said what concerns him is the way ideology is being put aside across the country.

    He cited the example of Haryana and the absence of any rationale in the coalition of the Chautalas and the BJP.

    It is just lust for power, he alleged.

    Pressing his point, Sibal cited the example of the US and the UK, saying the Republicans may be in trouble at this moment but they are not joining the Democrats in America and the same was true of the Labour party and the Conservatives in the UK.

    “Members of Parliaments in Europe do not indulge in such acrobatic switches for personal gain. Those too are functional democracies. Democracy in this country has become dysfunctional because it is not based on ideology,” Sibal said.

    The fight for power should be based on the clash of ideologies and not on personal “prasadas”, he asserted.

    Asked if he could ever think of leaving the party he has been with for decades, Sibal said “If the party considers that I have no value for it I might think of leaving it, but I would never join the BJP. This is because I am wedded to a particular ideology”.

    “Politics is not for personal gain, embracing ideologies which members of a party do not believe just for a Rajya Sabha seat or a position in the party or some other position. That is not my idea of politics,” he asserted.

    Expressing concern over the increasing trend of leaders switching between diametrically opposite ideologies, Sibal said the other real problem is that when people look at politicians behaving in this fashion they believe that these politicians are untrustworthy, unprincipled and have no ideology.

    This has nothing to do with value-based politics.

    If workers see their leaders jettisoning value-based politics they too will do the same, Sibal argued.

    “That weakens the foundations of democracy, the trust of the people in democratic principles and if the foundations of democracy get weakened, the structure one day will collapse. My worry is that my worry is not Jitin Prasada moving away from the Congress,” he said.

    Sibal also slammed the BJP for welcoming ‘prasada politics’.

    Its actions are equally unprincipled, he added.

  • Arrogance, might, money power lost in West Bengal: Congress leader Kapil Sibal

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: Following Trinamool Congress’ thumping win in assembly elections in West Bengal, Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Monday said “arrogance, might, money power and using Jai Shri Ram for politics” lost the polls in the state.

    Sibal also hailed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who is all set to continue her third term in West Bengal.

    “In West Bengal, who lost – arrogance, might, money power, using Jai Shri Ram for politics, a divisive agenda and the Election Commission. She (Mamata Benerjee) stood up to them and won,” the Congress leader said in a tweet.

    As per the latest trends of the Election Commission, TMC has won 209 seats and is leading in four. About 47.94 per cent of the total voted were in the TMC’s favour. It received about 38.1 per cent of the total. Bharatiya Janata Party, on the other hand, has secured 76 seats and is leading in one.

    Bengal witnessed a fierce contest between the ruling TMC and BJP across eight phases. The Samyukta Morcha comprising the Congress, Left parties and ISF has also tried to put up a strong fight. The BJP has made a concerted attempt to dislodge the TMC.

  • Why not same passion to win war against COVID as shown towards polls: Kapil Sibal takes dig at PM

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Tuesday asked why he was not showing the same passion to win the war against coronavirus as shown to win elections.

    With the country reeling under a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Congress has questioned Prime Minister Modi for addressing poll rallies in West Bengal while “ignoring his responsibilities” at the Centre.

    “Modiji, you use all your : might, muscle power, lung power, resources to win elections. Why not the same passion to win the war against Coronavirus for: our people?” Sibal said in a tweet.

    Modijiyou use all your :mightmuscle powerlung powerresourcesto win electionsWhy not the same passion to win the war against Coronavirus for :our people ?
    — Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) April 20, 2021

    In another tweet, the former Union minister said, “As people die of the pandemic, A citizen to Modiji: Rallies are fine, victories divine, but the battles you are fighting are really not mine!” Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, the BJP on Monday said it has decided against holding any big rally or public meeting, including by Prime Minister Modi and other party leaders, in the ongoing West Bengal assembly poll campaign.

  • Assam polls 2021: Ghulam Nabi Azad, Kapil Sibal, Manish Tewari not in Congress list of campaigners

    By IANS
    NEW DELHI: The Congress released the list of its star campaigners for the three- phase Assam Assembly elections which included party chief Sonia Gandhi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former party President Rahul Gandhi, his sister and party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and several others.

    Like West Bengal, the list missed out the names of former Rajya Sabha member Ghulam Nabi Azad, senior party leader Kapil Sibal, Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari and Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma, who are part of the G-23 signatories.

    The other star campaigners are Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Sachin Pilot, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, Mukul Wasnik, Salman Khurshid, Jitendra Singh, Vikas Upadhyay, Anirudh Singh, cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, Mohan Prakash, Nabam Tuki, Mukul Sangma.

    The party has also named Rameshwar Oraon, Assam Congress chief Ripun Bora, Sushmita Dev, Gourav Gogoi, Debabarta Saikia, Pradyut Bordolai, Rakibul Hussain, Bhupen Bora, Rana Goswami, Ranee Narah, Rupjyoti Kurmi, Roselina Tirkey and Pradip Nag.

    Priyanka Gandhi had last week gone to Assam on a two-day visit and addressed a few public rallies and also met Assam tea garden workers.

    She is again scheduled to visit the state in the coming days. Her brother Rahul Gandhi, who went to Tamil Nadu and Kerala earlier, will also visit Assam in the coming days. The Congress, which ruled the state for 15 years before losing power in 2016 to the BJP, is hoping for a comeback on the back of a multi-party alliance.

    The Congress has formed a Grand Alliance in Assam consisting of the AIUDF, Bodoland People’s Front, CPI, CPM, CPML, the Anchalik Gana Morcha and the Rashtriya Janata Dal. It was formed to fight the upcoming election for the 126-member assembly against the BJP-led NDA.

    Polling will take place in three phases — March 27, April 1 and April 6. Counting of votes will be taken up on May 2.

  • Congress ‘getting weak’, but not utilising experience of Ghulam Nabi Azad: Sibal

    Express News Service
    SRINAGAR: In a show of strength, Congress dissenters called the G-23 said the party had weakened in the past decade and vowed to work for strengthening and uniting the party.

    “Today is an opportunity to tell the truth and the truth is that we see that the Congress party has weakened. We have assembled here and had also gathered earlier and we will unitedly strengthen the party,” senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said while addressing the Shanti Sammelan in Jammu on Saturday. 

    Besides Sibal, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Raj Babbar, Manish Tewari and Vivek Tankha addressed the sammelan, the first coming together of the dissident Congress leaders at a single platform.

    Not happy with the party for not accommodating Azad in some capacity in the party, Sibal said, “When we felt that they were freeing Azad from parliament, we felt very bad. We felt he should not been freed from parliament. He is a very senior leader and I don’t understand why Congress is not utilizing services of Azad,” Sibal said.

    Azad said with Gandhi’s ideology, they would fight the new struggle. “We will carry forward his ideology and self service of Gandhi will remain with us.” “I follow the path of truth and non violence and my politics was never based on religion or cast. When I became the CM of J&K, I told people that politics of religion should not be involved in the governance,” he said.

    Sharma said all of them have reached the present position due to their hardwork and have not been parachuted. “I have not given the right to anybody to tell me whether we are Congressman or not. We can tell what the Congress is and we will strengthen the party.”Tewari said they came to Jammu to welcome Azad. “When the country is facing problems and changes are being made, we need Azad and his guidance to again take the boat to the bank.” 

  • Congress is weakening, ‘G-23’ has come together to strengthen it: Dissenters at Jammu meet

    By PTI
    JAMMU: In a public show of dissent, the ‘G-23’ leaders, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Kapil Sibal, who have been pressing for a leadership change and organisational overhaul in the Congress, gathered on one stage here on Saturday, saying the party is weakening and they have come together to strengthen it.

    “It is an occasion to speak the truth and I will speak the truth. Why have we gathered here? The truth is we can see that the Congress is weakening. We had gathered earlier also and together we have to strengthen the Congress,” Sibal said addressing an event dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi.

    The event was also attended by several other Congress leaders like Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Manish Tewari, Vivek Tankha and Raj Babbar of the group, now called ‘G-23′, which had triggered a storm in the party last year with their letter to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, expressing unhappiness over its functioning and demanding a full-time party president.

    The Congress leaders praised Azad for his contribution, with Sibal saying he is unable to understand why the party is not using the experience of a person like him.

    Azad, who was among the vocal letter-writers and was not given a renomination after his Rajya Sabha tenure ended recently, said he has only retired from the Upper House and not from politics.

    He was the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha.

    Asked about the Jammu meet of the leaders, the Congress said they were senior and highly respected members of the party and their best contribution to the Congress’ cause would be to get active in five poll-bound states and strengthen the party there.

    However, it did not comment on the leaders’ concern over the “weakening” of the Congress.

    In Jammu, Anand Sharma echoed his party colleague Sibal saying that the party has weakened over the last decade.

    ALSO READ | Congress again on brink of split, will start from J&K this time around: BJP

    He said none of the leaders present there have come into the party through shortcuts and nobody has the right to tell “if we are Congressmen or not”.

    He said they can visit any part of India and have come here to send a message that they are thankful for Azad’s contribution and are standing with him A party can make you an office-bearer but only a few who are recognised by the people go on to become leaders, he said at the event, where the Congress leaders, wearing saffron headgears, posed for pictures.

    Hooda said there are two kinds of people in Congress.

    “Some who are in Congress and others like Azad who have Congress in them.”

    “All of us have covered a very long distance to reach where we are today. We have not come from above, through the window or the skylight, all of us have walked through the door. We have come through the students’ movement and the youth movement,” Anand Sharma said.

    “I have not given anyone the right to tell me if we are Congressmen or not. Nobody has that right. We will build the party. We will strengthen it. When the Congress is united, it will also raise the morale of the people of the country,” he said.

    This is the first time that the dissenters have together publicly vent out their anger and comes ahead of elections in Kerala, Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

    “I have no hesitation in saying an organisation can give you an office. The Congress can make you an office-bearer but not every office-bearer can become a leader. Only some become leaders, those who are recognised by the people, not just in one state but far off in Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, UP and Karnataka,” Sharma said.

    Former Haryana chief minister Hooda said only when the Congress and the opposition are strengthened, will the country be strengthened.

    Babbar said the ‘G-23’ stands for “Mahatma Gandhi’s 23”.

    “With their firm resolve, Mahatma Gandhi’s 23 will work to strengthen Congress and make Congress victorious,” the former UP Congress chief said.

    ALSO READ | Congress looking for much-needed wins in upcoming assembly polls with the help of allies

    Sibal said they came here to take forward the Congress party to new heights.

    “We promise those who are sitting here and many more who are outside and support us, that we will work to strengthen the party.”

    “We want Congress to be strengthened in every district of the country. We do not want Congress to be weak because if Congress is weak, the nation will be weak. We will sacrifice whatever necessary to make the nation and the party strong,” he said.

    The Congress leaders also supported the demand for restoration of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir.

    Later, speaking to reporters, Azad said that the party has weakened over the years and they will work to strengthen it.