No Update about ‘1 Person, 1 Post’? Why Congress’s Udaipur Declaration is in Limbo 2 Years On

Introduction: What Happened to ‘1 Person, 1 Post’? Why Congress’s Udaipur Declaration is in Limbo 2 Years On

Two-and-a-half years after the Congress adopted the Udaipur Declaration with great enthusiasm, the party has yet to implement most of its promised reforms. The reluctance to enforce these changes is attributed to the fact that many top leaders close to Rahul Gandhi would be affected.

The Udaipur Declaration: A Promise Unfulfilled

During the three-day Nav Sankalp Shivir held from 14 to 16 May 2022 in Udaipur, Rajasthan, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) adopted the Udaipur Declaration. This included resolutions such as “no person should hold one party position for more than five years to give opportunity to new people.” However, these resolutions remain unimplemented, largely due to the influential positions held by key leaders.

For instance, K.C. Venugopal would need to be replaced as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary (organisation) if the five-year ceiling were enforced. Venugopal has held this post for around six years now. A senior Congress leader, speaking anonymously, noted, “KCV (K.C. Venugopal) is a power centre in the party. Even after 5 years when the tenure usually gets over, he continues in his post. It rarely happens.”

Entrenched Leadership

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been an AICC general secretary for five years, and Rajya Sabha MP Mukul Wasnik for over ten years. Another AICC functionary highlighted that Randeep Surjewala held the post of AICC communications in-charge for seven years until he was replaced by Jairam Ramesh in 2022. Surjewala was then promoted to AICC general secretary, a position he has held since 2020.

Congress spokesperson Akhilesh Pratap Singh assured that “All proposals will be implemented in the coming days. Our party is big. Sometimes it takes a long time to make big changes, so it’s not a big issue. We are continuously fighting against the BJP and its vicious agenda. The organisation changes will also happen in the coming days.”

Unfulfilled Proposals

Another significant proposal of the Udaipur Declaration was the establishment of three new departments: an election management department, a public insight department to gather public views on various issues, and a training institute to provide comprehensive training on Congress policies, ideology, and vision. However, these departments have yet to be formed.

The Congress also pledged to enforce the ‘one person, one post’ and ‘one family, one ticket’ principles of Udaipur Declaration with the caveat that a second family member could receive a ticket if they had worked for the party for at least five years. These proposals remain unimplemented, with party president Mallikarjun Kharge himself holding two posts—party president and leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. Similarly, Congress Delhi unit president Devender Yadav is also AICC in-charge of Punjab, and Venugopal heads the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament.

Lack of Implementation

Veteran leader Janardhan Dwivedi remarked, “The Udaipur Declaration was more like a suggestive measure. As per the Congress’s constitution, only those proposals which passed in the CWC would be implemented. If any proposal is passed but not implemented, then it’s a concern.”

The Congress had also decided to give 50 percent representation to those below 50 years of age at all levels of the organisation. However, among the members and permanent invitees of the CWC, only four—Deepender Hooda, Sachin Pilot, Kanhaiya Kumar, and Sachin Rao—are below 50 years of age.

Missed Opportunities

At another three-day Nav Sankalp Shivir held between 24 and 26 February 2023 in Raipur, the Congress passed an amendment guaranteeing 50 percent reservation across All India Congress Committee (AICC) and Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) posts for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes. However, such representation is still missing at the national or state level.

A senior party MP who attended both the Udaipur and Raipur sessions told ThePrint, “When we were present in Udaipur, it was being said that these declarations would be implemented soon. During the plenary session in 2023, some of these declarations were brought in the form of the party’s constitutional amendment but after that, nothing happened practically.”

Conclusion: A Call for Change

Political analyst Rashid Kidwai noted, “No such implementation happened in the last 2.5 years. There is no hunger and desperation to bring change to the party. This is one of the key reasons behind the party’s situation in the electoral battle. These things do not boost the morale of a common worker. They are not noticing any major change in the party despite continuous losses.”

As the Congress continues to face electoral challenges, the unfulfilled promises of the Udaipur Declaration highlight the need for genuine reform and a commitment to revitalising the organisation.