Cong workers attempt self-immolation

In the morning, it was high drama at the dharna camp when city Mahila Congress president Shanta Srivatsava and another woman activist doused themselves with kerosene and tried to set themselves ablaze. However, party functionaries frustrated their attempt.

In the afternoon, partymen wrenched a kerosene can from Srivatsava when she once again tried to set herself afire. In the process, she turned hysterical and started weeping. Following the incident, mild tension prevailed and an armed picket was posted in the precincts of Gandhi Bhavan as a precautionary measure.

Pradesh Congress Committee secretary K V P Ramachandra Rao appealed the party activists notto resort to such acts and advised them to carry on the struggle in a peaceful manner.

Hundreds of party leaders and activists who gathered at the camp raised slogans against Congress Working Committee members Sharad Pawar, P A Sangma and Tariq Anwar. Leaders who addressed the gathering urged Sonia Gandhi to reconsider her decision to resign from the party president post.

Meanwhile, the entire executives of PCC, district Congress Committees and A P Congress Seva Dal have submitted their resignation.

Later, addressing a press conference, PCC spokesman K Rosaiah hoped that Sonia would reconsider her decision.

Stating that a major conspiracy was hatched by quot;foreign forcesquot; to weaken the party he said that such type of crises were not new. Congress emerged as a much stronger force after the crisis in 1969 and 1978,quot; he said.

Rosaiah advised Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to answer the questions raised by Anna-TDP president N Harikrishna before pointing an accusing finger at Congress. He alsopredicted that the happiness of TDP and BJP over the difficulties in Congress would be short-lived as Sonia would take up the reins of the party soon.