Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said 2025 will be a year for strengthening the organisation to fight those spreading lies as he called for nurturing new and regional leadership in the party to help make it poll-ready.

With a resolve to come up with new ideas and strategy, he told party leaders that this is not the time for despair but for carrying forward the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru and the heritage of great leaders.

He also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government are not accepting the "mistake" of Home Minister Amit Shah with his "extremely insulting" remarks about B R Ambedkar and asserted that the party will fight for the respect of the architect of the Constitution.

The Congress chief asserted that 2025 will be the year of the party's organisational empowerment.

"We will fill all the vacant posts in the organisation. We will fully implement the Udaipur Declaration. We will equip our organisation with the skills required to win elections from AICC to Mandal and booth," he said.

"We will have to find such people who are ideologically committed. Who are ready to fight to protect the Constitution. Those who believe in the Congress party's idea of India will have to be connected to the party. They will have to be brought into the mainstream. They will have to be involved in the organisational work," Kharge said.

"Only hard work is not enough, timely concrete strategy and direction are necessary. There is a need to give a chance to new strength, there is also a need to nurture local and new leadership," he said.

In his opening remarks here at the Congress Working Committee meeting 'Nav Satyagraha Baithak' to mark the 100 years of Mahatma Gandhi assuming the presidentship of the party at the Belgaum session, Kharge alleged that constitutional institutions are being controlled and cited the example of the Election Commission.

"The matter of concern is that people's faith in the electoral process is gradually decreasing because questions are being raised on the impartiality of the Commission. A few days ago, they changed the election rules so that the information that the court had ordered to be shared could be stopped. What is it that they are trying to hide," he asked.

It is a matter of concern that people's faith in the election process is gradually decreasing because questions are being raised on the impartiality of the commission, he said.

Noting that sometimes names of voters are deleted from the list, or people are prevented from casting their vote, while sometimes there is a sudden increase in the number of voters in the list, or vote percentage increases unexpectedly towards the end, Kharge said, "These are some questions that keep arising for which no satisfactory answer is found."

Raising the issue of Shah's remarks on Ambedkar in Rajya Sabha earlier this month, he said the statement was "extremely insulting" to the maker of the Constitution.

"We raised objections, protested and demonstrated. Now protests are taking place all over the country. But the Prime Minister and the government are not ready to accept their mistake. Far from seeking an apology and resignation from Amit Shah, they supported the objectionable statement," he said.

The Prime Minister issued a statement in defence of the Home Minister and a false case was filed against Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, he said.

"This is the attitude of today's rulers towards the Constitution and its architect. But we are not going to be afraid of anyone nor are we going to bow down. We will fight till the last breath for the ideology of Nehru-Gandhi and the respect of Babasaheb," Kharge said.

He also took a swipe at the prime minister, saying when he he bowed his head on the steps of old Parliament after winning his first election, the new Parliament was built. "We are afraid that this time before taking oath in the new Parliament House, he bowed his head before the Constitution," he said.

Recalling Mahatma Gandhi's words that "Truth survives even when it does not have public support", Kharge said we have the truth and crores of people behind us.

"That is why this is not the time to despair. We have to destroy the lies of our opponents with unity. We have to move ahead with confidence and face the challenges boldly. And we will definitely succeed," he said before ending his speech.

He said the Congress has the power of ideology, the legacy of Gandhi-Nehru and the heritage of great heroes.

"We will return from Belagavi with a new message and new resolution. That is why we named this meeting is named 'Nav Satyagraha' because today even those who hold a constitutional post, are questioning Mahatma Gandhi's Satyagraha," he said.

"Those who have taken oath on the Constitution are the ones spreading lies. Those in power take the help of falsehood and accuse us. We have to expose and defeat such people," he said.

The Congress chief also recalled how Mahatma Gandhi became the Congress president only for a year but he set such high standards that it is difficult for any political leader to match that.

"Gandhiji gave the Congress Constitution a new form and established a place for the Congress in the hearts of the villages, poor, farmers and labourers and connected the Congress organisation with constructive works. He also included untouchability and discrimination with the main Congress agenda. You should all be proud that the Congress has Mahatma Gandhi's legacy and we are its inheritors," he said.

Kharge said Gandhi ji expressed concern over the communal riots in Kohat and Gulbarga and Motilal Nehru brought a resolution at the Belgaum session condemning the riots.

"It is unfortunate that even 100 years later the ruling party and its leaders are openly giving inflammatory slogans and their big leaders are disturbing peace and harmony in society and creating hatred among communities. They are also making people fight against others.