Article 370 dominates Rajasthan Cong meet on local polls

The issue of Article 370 dominated the Congress state unit meeting here, chaired by state party chief Sachin Pilot, which had been organised to take up civic polls in Rajasthan.

The elections to 52 civic units are scheduled in November. 

At the meeting on Wednesday evening, the Congress leaders wanted to know the party's stand on abrogation of Article 370 to be able to reply to people's queries.

Former Minister A.A. Khan alias Durru Miya said our party had failed to take a coherent stand on the issue. While the Congress President was saying something, others were speaking in different languages, he added.

"The division in the party on the subject can dent the poll prospects," he said.

Pratap Khachriyawas, a Minister, called for discussion to formulate a reasoned stand.

Khan pointed to dichotomy between veteran leaders, like Jairam Ramesh and Shashi Tharoor, and Rahul Gandhi and the Congress President. What should be our response to people's queries, he asked.

When Pilot intervened to say it was not a local issue and won't figure prominently in civic elections, Khan said without a clear-cut stand on Article 370, the party could only expect a disastrous results in upcoming local polls.

Underplaying the demand, Pilot asked all Congress workers to stand united to ensure party's victory. "These are crucial elections. We need to work unitedly. Let's focus on resolving people's issues," he said.
IANS