Welcoming the proposed elevation of Rahul Gandhi as the Congress national president, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday described it as a step in the right direction to revive the party’s fortunes ahead of the 2019 lok Sabha polls.
The party elections announced today and Rahul’s elevation were long overdue, said the Chief Minister while talking to the media persons at Vidhan Sabha.
He said that it was time to pass on the baton of the party affairs into the able hands of Rahul, who was mature and competent enough to lead the Congress into the next Parliamentary elections.
Capt Amarinder said that he was completely in favour of promoting youth, in whose hands lay the future of the party and the country.
Pointing out that the Congress in Punjab, he said that the party had fielded the maximum number of youth in the last Assembly polls. It was in national interest to infuse young blood into the polity, he added.
Captain Amarinder pointed out that he had always been in favour of Rahul taking over the party’s reins in order to inject the much-needed dynamism into it. Rahul had all the qualifications needed to provide strong and visionary leadership to the Congress, he added.
On the issue of farm debt waiver, the Chief Minister said that the process was in full swing and he had directed the Deputy Commissioners to submit lists of eligible farmers from their respective districts. The waiver process would be rolled out soon, he added.
Reiterating his government’s commitment to farm loan waiver as per the notification issued last month, the Chief Minister said that around 10.25 lakh debt-ridden farmers would get benefit of Rs 9,500 crore under the scheme.