Congress prepares for centenary celebration of Mahatma Gandhi''s historic 1924 Belagavi Session

    Belagavi (Karnataka), Dec 17 (PTI) AICC general secretary K C Venugopal on Tuesday reviewed preparations for the centenary celebrations of the 1924 Indian National Congress session, presided over by Mahatma Gandhi.

    The event is scheduled here on December 26 and 27.
    The party has decided to hold a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on December 26 in Belagavi and a public meeting on December 27.
    AICC general secretary in charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala, and the party's national treasurer and Rajya Sabha MP from the state, Ajay Maken, also arrived along with Venugopal.
    Leaders including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister and state congress chief D K Shivakumar, ministers, and party legislators attended a meeting to discuss the event at the party office here.
    "We are organising a historic conference on December 26 and 27 in Belagavi remembering the hundredth anniversary of the congress session presided over by Mahatma Gandhi. The Belagavi session of the Indian National Congress was a historic one in our Indian political history," Venugopal said.
    He told reporters here, "The AICC is holding an extended working committee meeting on December 26 afternoon, followed by a massive rally on December 27. We will finalise the details of the programme after discussions. We will also visit the sites to assess the arrangements."
    The 39th session of the Indian National Congress, held in Belagavi in 1924, was the only Congress session presided over by Mahatma Gandhi.
    Later, speaking to reporters after the meeting, Venugopal said the Belagavi conference is going to be the "biggest turning point" in Indian political history and for the Congress party.
    "We need to make the biggest decision from Belagavi on how to fight the dictatorship of the BJP and Narendra Modi," he said.
    During the meeting, the party will analyse the current political situation, and the BJP government's laws endorsing their ideology, and discuss what Congress' ideology stands for, he added.
    Accusing the BJP of "destroying love and affection among people, spreading hatred in the name of religion, and dividing them", Venugopal alleged that the saffron party was setting up a "Nafrat ka Bazaar" (market of hate) everywhere.
    "We know the atmosphere in the country today. Mahatma Gandhi fought through Ahimsa (non-violence), he achieved freedom against the British Raj through Ahimsa, love, affection, and equality. All these qualities have vanished under the BJP. There is no equality in this country. The rich are becoming richer, and only one man's interest is being protected now. The poor are becoming poorer," he said.
    Shivakumar said that as part of the government programme, the statue of Mahatma Gandhi will be unveiled on December 26 on the premises of the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha by the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge.
    All MPs and legislators, across party lines, will be invited to the statue unveiling event, he added.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)