Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will launch a campaign aimed at rebuilding the Congress party in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday. The campaign, approved by the Congress Working Committee (CWC), is designed to prepare the party for the 2028 assembly elections and revitalize its presence in the state.
The opposition leader in the Lok Sabha will kick off the ‘Sangathan Srajan Abhiyan’ (Organisation Rejuvenation Campaign) in Bhopal, following a string of brainstorming meetings. The initiative was first announced during the extended CWC meeting in Belagavi in December 2024.
“The ‘Abhiyan’ is aimed at strengthening the party at the grassroots level and rejuvenating enthusiasm among party workers. Congress has not been in power in Madhya Pradesh for a long time, and this is a significant step toward reclaiming lost ground,” said former Madhya Pradesh Congress President Arun Yadav and ex-minister Sajjan Verma on Monday.
Yadav emphasized that the campaign, dubbed Mission 2028, is focused on bringing Congress back into power in Madhya Pradesh in the upcoming assembly elections. He compared the initiative to a similar exercise undertaken by the Congress in Gujarat, where the party is currently in a challenging situation.
Since 2003, Congress has largely been out of power in the state, with a brief 15-month period from December 2018 to March 2020 when Kamal Nath served as chief minister. In the 2023 assembly elections, the BJP delivered a crushing defeat to Congress, securing 163 out of 230 seats, while Congress was reduced to just 66 seats. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP further solidified its dominance, winning all 29 seats in the state, including Chhindwara, which had been a Congress stronghold.
The rejuvenation campaign will focus on improving coordination and communication between the party’s rank and file, MPs, MLAs, office-bearers, and representatives from various units of Congress. Rahul Gandhi, upon arriving in Bhopal, will visit the state Congress office and attend a meeting of the political affairs committee. The meeting will address the political situation in the state and discuss upcoming challenges.
Gandhi will also hold an interactive session with MPs and MLAs, followed by meetings with observers appointed by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) and state in-charges. He will conclude his visit by addressing a convention comprising AICC representatives, state Congress leaders, and district and block-level presidents.
Verma also noted that the central government agreed to conduct a caste-based census following Rahul Gandhi’s sustained advocacy for social inclusion.
He claimed that despite initial resistance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior BJP leaders, the government eventually bowed to the demand, which Verma credits to Gandhi’s tireless efforts. The Congress is planning a thanksgiving event for Gandhi in recognition of his role in advocating the caste-based census.