Jaipur: A day before its crucial three-day conference, the Congress party's dashing leader from Rajasthan Sachin Pilot pins his hope on Sonia Gandhi.
The 44-year-old ex-deputy chief minister sat with The Indian Express talking about a range issues, ahead of Friday's "Chintan Shivir" in Udaipur here.
Fifty percent of delegates attending the Chintan Shivir are below the age of 40, which tellingly shows Sonia Gandhi's inclination towards young leadership for the party, according to him. India being a young country, he said, leadership roles will increasingly go into the hands of young people.
When asked how BJP kept winning polls, Sachin said winning a few polls did not mean all their sins would be washed away. He asked whether they apolgised to the farmers who had protested and those who died by suicide. He accused BJP of crushing farmers and young people with all kinds of curbs. Winning polls didn't give them licence to act at their will, he said.
Pilot hoped that the party could emerge as a viable political alternative and strategy for it would be discussed in the "Chintan Shivir".
400-plus delegates from across the country would supply feedback highlighting the requirements at grassroots today, he said.
Chintan Shivir, according to him, would discuss threadbare the political realities of the country as the Congress wanted to give an alternative governance model, addressing issues affecting the common man.
When asked about the major changes the conference was likely to bring about, he said the party would declare on 15th what transpired at the meeting, and noted that six committees would deliberate several issues. Sachin himself would be in the economics committee headed by P Chidambaram.
He attacked Modi administration for failing to keep its offer of Rs 20 lakh crore package during the lockdown. He alleged the government was selling family silver, meaning its airlines and railways.
Coming to Rajasthan, he said one of the Congress's short-term goals was to retain its government. The party wanted to break a 30 years' tradition of alternating power between BJP and Congress every five years. He expressed confidence in the party continuing in power in 2023 as well.