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Journalism of Courage
NEW DELHI, MAY 24: In a turnaround that followed much drama across the country, Sonia Gandhi agreed tonight to continue as Congress president, paving the way for her to use tomorrow8217;s AICC session as a launching pad for her election campaign.
8220;She will convey her message to the people from the forum of the AICC8221;, confirmed senior leader Pranab Mukherjee who announced Sonia8217;s decision after a CWC resolution urged her once again to reconsider her resignation.
After ensuring Sonia8217;s return, the AICC establishment has now swung into action to identify possible trouble-makers at the specially convened session being held here tomorrow and silence them when she makes her maiden re-entry.
The establishment is now keen that a clear message be sent across the country that there is no dissent in the party after the expulsion of Sharad-Sangma-Tariq.
Mukherjee, who has emerged as a key member of the party8217;s fire fighting team, called on former Orissa Chief Minister J B Patnaik to seek his help in this arduous task. Patnaik has been unhappy with the leadership after he was dropped as Congress Working Committee member and later removed as Chief Minister.
He has been Chief Minister of Orissa for 16 years and yields considerable influence. Patnaik is considered close to the former Prime Minister, P V Narasimha Rao who has been maintaining a studied silence.
Since the expelled trio claimed that their supporters in the Congress would surface at an appropriate time, Sonia loyalists are a worried lot today as tomorrow could be an opportune time to embarrass the leader who has indicated her desire to attend the session if she is ensured of complete peace at the venue.
It is feared that there are AICC delegates from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and the northeast who can create problems at Talkatora Stadium tomorrow, putting a spanner in the works of those who want to convince Sonia that no one in the party is against her.
Sonia Gandhi herself told some party leaders today that they should ensure that the Congress8217;s image is not dented by the actions of frenzied workers outside her 10 Janpath residence and other elements at the AICC.
She cancelled her regular evening darshan to the party workers today and met a handful of leaders including Pranab Mukherjee, Ahmed Patel, Kamal Nath, Ajit Jogi and R D Pradhan.
Incidentally, when Jogi sought her clearance of the press statement to be issued on Kargil, she observed that she was not the president of the party. But to others her main concern was peaceful conduct of proceedings tomorrow.
