'Congress has talent, reach; only need is...': G-23 leader's message before meet

G-23 leader Vivek Tankha said it is time to think not what the party can do, but what one can do for the Congress.

Senior Congress leader Vivek Tankha, who is also part of the rebel group of the party's 23 leaders on Sunday said the party has talent and reach. What it needs is a collective endeavour. "Let's do it. We can do it," the Congress leader tweeted ahead of the party's 4pm meet today.

G-23 leaders have demanded a new Congress president as soon as possible, after Congress's rout in the recently concluded assembly elections. 

"Time to think ! Not what party can do for you , but what you can do for the party. Appeal to CWC, re build the idea of India once again. We have talent & reach. What we need is a collective endeavour. Let’s do it. We can do it," he wrote.

The Congress Working Committee, which is the top-decision making body of the party, is scheduled to meet at 4pm to discuss the party's performance in the recent state assembly elections, where it lost Punjab to Aam Aadmi Party.

“The decision to call a CWC meeting just three days after the poll results is unusual. Generally, a CWC meeting is called weeks later,” a Congress leader said.

A day after the results of the assembly election in five states, including Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur, were announced, Congress MPs Kapil Sibal and Manish Tewari held a meeting at another G-23 leader Ghulam Nabi Azad's house to discuss the poor performance of the party and their future strategy.

News agency ANI on Sunday reported G-23 had suggested Mukul Wasnik's name for the post of the president of the party, but it was not accepted.

"Though Sonia Gandhi is the (interim) president, it is virtually (being) run by KC Venugopal, Ajay Maken and Randeep Surjewala. There is no accountability fixed on them," a source cited by ANI said. "Rahul Gandhi is not the president. But he operates from behind the scene and takes decisions. He does not communicate openly. We are party's well-wishers and not enemies," the source reportedly added.

The focus has already shifted to the internal functioning of the Grand Old Party in the aftermath of the massive drubbing with Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday slamming reports that Gandhis will offer to resign in today's meet. "It is unfair for a TV channel to carry such unsubstantiated propaganda stories emanating from imaginary sources at the instance of ruling BJP," Surjewala tweeted.

(With agency inputs)