As of yesterday, the 16th of December, Congress’ 49th President, Rahul Gandhi swore in. Here are the details of the ceremony.
Rahul Gandhi on Saturday took over as Congress president by succeeding his mother Sonia Gandhi. The 47-year-old was officially declared party president in a ceremony held at the party’s 24 Akbar Road headquarters here. He was given the certificate of Congress president by Mullappally Ramachandran, the chairman of the party’s central election authority, who oversaw the organizational polls.
The ceremony was attended by party stalwarts, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan and other party leaders.
His sister Priyanka Gandhi and brother-in-law Robert Vadra were also present on the occasion.
Sweets were distributed, slogans raised, crackers burst and party workers danced to drum beats to celebrate the change of guard. Artists from different parts of the nation were also seen performing outside the party head office. Congress workers marched from Rail Bhavan to the party office. Sonia headed the party for 19 years since 1998.
Congress will meet any challenge with love and affection: Rahul
“Like many Indians across the country, I am an idealist,” begins Mr. Rahul Gandhi in English. “But many of us are disillusioned today with what we see in politics today. It is devoid of kindness and truth. Today politics is used to crush people, not lift them. Politics belongs to the people.
“The moment you challenge the structure of power to stand with the power, you are attacked. To weaken you, they lie and distort. The Congress had taken the country into the 21st century but our Prime Minister is taking us back. We are now being told only one man is the voice of reason – that everything is subservient to him. Our foreign policy is in tatters so that one man can be strong.
“They want to weaken us but they can do that only if we back down. Stand up to them. We at the Congress promise that we will defend the voice of every Indian. We will never allow silencing the voice of every Indian. I want the Congress party to become an instrument of dialogue for all Indians.
“I’d like to speak a bit in Hindi now,” he says before switching to Hindi as the uncharacteristically silent crowd begins to cheer. Once you start a fire, it is very difficult to contain, he says, pointing at the firecrackers outside. This is what we have been trying to explain to the BJP, he adds.
I want to tell every Congress worker this – you are my family, says Mr. Gandhi, before adding that he invites the youth to come forth and build an India with love and kindness. My responsibility is to protect your voice, he says.
Switching to English, he continues. “Congress is an ancient idea. BJP would like you to believe their idea is the oldest, this is not true. We consider the BJP our brothers and sisters, though we don’t agree with them. We do not fight hate with hate. They crush voices, but we allow the most vulnerable to sing. Congress has always and will always meet any challenge with love and affection. It is with utmost humility that I accept this position.”
The ceremony winds up with the National Anthem.
It was a big moment for the party, which is not having the best of times politically with only eight out of 29 states under its reign. And it was a big moment for Rahul too, who now has some big shoes to fill.
However, in the middle of the very serious political event, a beautiful mother-son moment was captured.
As cameras rolled and clicked away at his swearing-in, an emotional Rahul Gandhi was seen kissing his mother on the forehead on the stage; a photo that will leave a mark.
#officeofRG . Congress President Rahul Gandhi with Sonia Gandhi as he take over as President of Congress party. Photo Sandeep Saxena pic.twitter.com/kLppgxCW2Z
— Sandeep Saxena (@sandeep662003) December 16, 2017
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