Ahead of Chintan Shivir, focus back on one-family-one-ticket rule: What this means for the Gandhis

The Congress is all set to hold Chintan Shivir , a brainstorming session to revive the party’s electoral fortunes, over the weekend. Amid speculation on the upcoming discussions at the meet, it has emerged that the party’s “one-ticket-one-family” and “one-man-one-post” rules are likely to make a comeback.

What are the norms?

According to the one-ticket-one-family rule, only one member of the family will be given a ticket to fight the elections. It is among the proposals, which were discussed at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting led by chief Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on Monday, ahead of the three-day Chintan Shivir starting Friday, reports NDTV.

The “one-man-one-post” rule dictates that a leader can only hold one position in the party or a possible role in any government.

What does this mean for the Gandhis?

If only one family member is allowed to contest on a Congress ticket, that member is likely to be Rahul Gandhi , according to a CNN-News18 report.

What does this mean for Rahul’s sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra, who was likely to make an electoral debut in the 2024 general polls? The rule also implies that Sonia Gandhi will not be able to contest the elections.

However, the norm might not apply to the Gandhis, say party insiders. “Well, it could also mean one Gandhi can go to the Rajya Sabha. Chances are that there could be an exception made for the Gandhis,” a leader at the meeting told CNN-News18.

With this exception, Congress will once again be under fire from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which has constantly been accusing the grand old party of putting the Gandhi family first.

According to media reports, many Congress leaders are unhappy that their children or relatives will be denied tickets if the “one-family-one-ticket” rule comes into play.

The party remains divided on the rule. Some believe it sends a positive message to the party workers but others think that in elections what matters is the ability of the candidate to win votes.

Has this rule been used in the past?

The party applied the rule in the recently held Punjab and Uttarakhand Assembly elections. It led to many rebel candidates and caused senior members of the Punjab Congress to protest. Former Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s brother Manohar Singh fought as an independent as the party did not give him a ticket.

The party lost the state to the Aam Aadmi Party , which won 92 seats. The Congress won 18.

However, the rule was waived off in Uttarkhand where veteran Harish Rawat and his daughter contested the elections.

What else is up for discussion at Chinta Shivir? More than 400 leaders are expected to participate in the Chintan Shivir. Members of Group of 23, the dissident senior party leaders, who want sweeping changes in the Congress will also be part of the brainstorming session. Of the delegates who will participate in the session, 50 per cent are below 50 years of age, around 35 per cent are below 40, and 21 per cent are women representing different sections of society.

One of the big challenges that the party faces is leaders leaving to join the BJP and AAP. At the Shivir, a loyalty oath is likely to be administered, according to CNN-News18.

The Congress is likely to focus on young leaders – those below 50 – and reserve at least half internal positions for them. Unemployment and inflation will be on the agenda. There’s also talk of 50 per cent reservation for SC, ST, OBC and minorities in the organisation, up from the present 20 per cent.

The party can revive the Parliamentary Board mechanism to make the decision-making process collective, a key demand of the G-23 leaders. It is likely to give a call for alignment to political parties to challenge the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and take a strong stand against the politics of hatred, according to The Indian Express.

A discussion on creating a separate election wing to look into the party’s poll campaign is on the cards.

Sonia Gandhi will set the tone for the Chintan Shivir and the party hopes it can course-correct and make a much-needed comeback in the general elections.

However, she has said that the Shivir cannot become a “ritual” and added that it should “herald a restructured organisation to meet the many ideological, electoral and managerial tasks we confront”. With inputs from agencies

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