Why did the new jumbo CWC skip a discussion on organisational matters?

New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) might have dwelt on various issues confronting the nation, but the party's highest decision-making body skipped a crucial discussion on how to strengthen the organisational structure across the country, especially in states where it has weakened over time.  

In its first meeting in Hyderabad after being reconstituted, the CWC passed four resolutions. Apart from a 14-point comprehensive resolution on various issues, including one nation-one poll formula, women's reservation bill and increase in the existing upper limit of quota for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes (OBCs), the three others were on natural disaster in Himachal Pradesh, ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur and the last one on the demise of former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy.  

However, the jumbo 84-member CWC -- it now has 39 members, 18 permanent invitees, 14 in-charges of states, nine special invitees and four ex-officio members -- did not touch upon any organisational matter.  

Perhaps one reason could be that the issue was discussed threadbare first in the three-day Chintan Shivir (brainstorming session) at Udaipur in May last year and later in the three-day 85th plenary at Raipur in February this year.  

But that does not stop the grand old party from discussing the ways and means to strengthen the organisation in future meetings.  

In fact, it should be a continuous process for Congress needs to realise that over the years it has been reduced to political margins in many key states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal. A revival in these states is possible only if the organisational structure is strengthened at the grassroots level.

The Congress has also to understand that its revival at the national level largely depends on the resurgence in states. It is also important to strengthen the regional satraps and give them a free hand to run the party in their respective states. Besides, the Congress high command should stop creating proxies with no support base in order to cut the satraps to size. The proxies tend to hurt the party in the long run.