New Delhi:
The latest issue of Congress Sandesh once again does not have Sonia Gandhi's usual message to party workers.
This is the second successive issue of the party mouthpiece, which has not carried Gandhi's message.
Generally, all issues of Congress Sandesh started by Gandhi, over a decade ago, carries a letter addressed by her to Congressmen conveying the party stand on key issues in public domain.
The party mouth piece, which has an editorial in place of Gandhi's letter has, however cautioned against infighting and rebel candidates without mentioning them.
"The key to success of the Congress would obviously be to listen to the call of the Congress President Sonia Gandhi to fight unitedly. Everyone cannot be given a seat but the party's decision should be considered as final and no one must challenge this. Whosoever so is chosen by the party must get the unstinted support of all Congress workers," the editorial said.
The editorial comes in the backdrop of a large number of rebel candidates from contesting in West Bengal as the party could not accommodate them because it got only 65 of the 294 seats under the alliance with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress.
It later fielded candidates on two more seats, which were given to SUCI under alliance with Trinamool Congress.
The party has in its mouthpiece also lambasted the Opposition parties for raking up their issues during the budget session.
"The Opposition parties have once again gone ahead and wasted the budget session due to their lack of commitment to Parliamentary democracy," the editorial said and blamed the BJP holding up the functioning of the Budget session by "unsubstantiated Wikileaks reports that the whole world has ignored and later came back to haunt BJP itself".
"The budget session is the most important session, when the allocation for various ministries and various programmes is made. This should have been discussed and debated in Parliament....it is indeed a matter of regret that BJP did not let this happen."
"The BJP should answer the public as to why it failed to discuss such an important issue and instead wasted the tax payers' money by forcing constant adjournments in Parliament," the editorial said.
It also hailed the Union Budget as "good and balanced" which put "UPA government's goals of inclusive growth at the forefront."
The party mouthpiece has strongly batted for the Goods and Services Tax saying a united tax would help pave the way for India to become a truly single market.
"This act would allow a free movement of goods and services between states and thus help overcome the bottlenecks of the supply side," it said.
The editorial also expressed confidence that the party and its allies will emerge victorious in elections in Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
The editorial also said it hoped that that opposition governments in states would not use political ideology as a way of holding back GST.
The editorial of Congress Sandesh also urged the party workers to reach out to the grass-roots and propagate the many schemes and policies that the UPA government has put in place for the benefit of aam admi.
At the AICC briefing Congress spokesperson, Abhishek Singhvi said that party is looking forward positively and with a sense of victory and confidence at the elections.
"We know for sure that the writings on the wall is clear in the Left-ruled Kerala and West Bengal and people want to give a befitting reply to their misrule in these states," he said.
While acknowledging anti-incumbency factor in Tamil Nadu, he said the alliance with Congress has huge support and hence it was confident of putting its best
foot forward.
He hoped that the government's efforts to sign agreements with extremist groups and bring peace in Assam will return the party to power for the third time.