War of words in Congress: 'Those who talk of surgery responsible for party's decline'

NEW DELHI: In a veiled attack on party general secretary Digvijaya Singh, a senior Congress leader on Monday disfavoured any "cosmetic surgery" in Congress following the assembly poll debacle.
Amid demands for drastic overhaul of Congress, Satyavrat Chaturvedi, a member of the Rajya Sabha, said what the party needed was a "cardiac surgery" and "cosmetic surgery" will not do.
In a pot shot at Digvijaya Singh who had favoured a major surgery in the organisation, Chaturvedi said "those who are talking of surgery needed to introspect as because of them the party has come to such a pass."
Chaturvedi, a former party spokesperson, hails from Madhya Pradesh, the home state of Digvijaya Singh, and is his known detractor.
"Cardiac surgery is necessary. The party will have to think about those people under whose leadership the party had to face such a defeat," Chaturvedi said apparently training his guns on the leaders in the states where the party lost.
At the AICC briefing, party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi was subjected to a lot of questions on the issue of organizational overhaul and statements by several leaders, including him, on the exercise.
He dismissed the contention that suggestion for a reform or improvement in the party were against the interests of the organization.
Responding to questions, he said there was no gag order against any suggestions provided they are not aimed at destabilizing the party by giving "unifocal look" at the leadership.
The statement of the Congress spokesperson was significant given the fact that only two days back another party spokesperson PC Chako had said that Digvijaya Singh should have made sugestions in party fora.
There has been disquiet in a section of the party for not taking any action since the last Lok Sabha polls defeat two years back to set the house in order. This section feels that there has been much introspection and what is needed is action.
Singhvi saw nothing wrong in what Digvijaya Singh had pitched for or what he himself has suggested. He said Chaturvedi's statements are also in order, except one sentence where he has made some attack on another individual.
"This party does not work on gag orders", he said in reply to questions, noting that a meeting of the Congress Working Committee would be held soon.
New younger state leaders should be brought in, Congress Working Committee revamped and "usual faces" "shunted" to advisory roles were among the suggestions made by Singhvi on while maintaining that the talk of "surgery" in the organisation is "never about unifocal look at leadership".
Among the steps being suggested by leaders was a "new" Congress Working Committee, the apex decision-making body of the party, new general secretaries and early declaration of candidates.
Echoing Singhvi's views on revamping major bodies, former Union minister V Kishore Chandra Deo too had advocated the need for sending over a dozen senior leaders, whom he accused of "misleading" party chief Sonia Gandhi, on a compulsory holiday.