Congress party chairperson Sonia Gandhi expressed confidence in the performance of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government during its nearly ten years in office. Gandhi was addressing the All India Congress Committee (AICC) meet in New Delhi.
At the outset, Gandhi reiterated the party’s recent decision to not project vice president Rahul Gandhi as a prime ministerial candidate, ahead of the May general elections, even as rival BJP has said Gujarat CM Narendra Modi would be its candidate.
Also read: Rahul to lead poll campaign, but won't be PM candidate
Even as the party suffered a stunning electoral reverse in December, losing four of the five states that went to polls, and with many political analysts saying chances of the UPA coming back to power appear bleak, the senior Gandhi said the party had faced “many difficulties in the past” and urged workers to not “lose hope and heart”.
Outlining the government’s economic milestones, she said no government had achieved in 10 years as much as the UPA had done. “Our party has improved the lives of millions of people.”
Gandhi stressed that growth in India needs to be “inclusive” and that most of the government’s social welfare policies were aimed at helping the poor.
The party chairperson also said the government had done several things to curb corruption such as passage of the Right to Information Act, Aadhar and the Lokpal bill.
Speaking at the same event, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said India had witnessed tremendous growth in the past 10 years. “Never in the history of India, the country's health was so robust,” he said, adding that when he speaks of growth, he speaks of “inclusive growth”.
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