The A.K. Antony Committee, set up by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to examine reasons for the party’s poor showing in the recent Assembly elections, has in its report disapproved of the practice of fielding the kith and kin of party leaders in elections, and said its chief ministers, CLP leaders and PCC chiefs must 'work 24x7'.
The committee, which besides the defence minister also comprised Union power minister Sushilkumar Shinde and Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit, has given its report to Mrs Gandhi, a well-placed source said on Monday.
In its five page report, the committee suggested the party should announce its Assembly and Lok Sabha candidates at least eight to 10 months before the elections. This, it felt, would help reduce campaign expenditure and make the battle more focused, sources said.
The committee found fielding relatives of leaders led to the rank and file getting demoralised. It said the leaders nominated such relatives on the pretext of “elective merit”, and that this trend was rapidly spreading in all elections.
The panel advised that Congress chief ministers, legislative party leaders and PCC presidents should not only be accessible to people at all times, they should also 'work 24x7'.
The central leadership had been getting reports that these leaders, and even some Union ministers, were inaccessible to party workers, let alone other citizens.