Congress leaders met here on Friday, too, to discuss the situation in Kashmir as the Congress Working Committee that met the other day could not reach a consensus on the matter.

The second meeting also failed to reach a consensus as many members questioned the resolution of the CWC that condemned the Centre’s move. A host of leaders had openly went against the party’s line and supported the Centre on the abrogating Article 370 of the Constitution.

Opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former finance Minister P Chidambaram struggled to convince the CWC members and general secretaries about the party’s position on the matter. “What the BJP government accomplished in the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha has grave implications going well beyond J&K and calls into question the very idea of India being a Union of States. J&K acceded to India as one State and no government has the power to change its status, divide it, or reduce any part of it to a Union Territory,” the CWC resolution said.

The party’s policy makers on the Kashmir scenario, senior leaders including Azad, Chidambaram, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, AICC general secretary in-charge of the State Ambika Soni, were in touch with other leaders so that a consensus could be evolved. Meanwhile, another member in the core group on Kashmir, Karan Singh, also voiced a different opinion. Some leaders have reportedly said in both the meetings that nuanced approach of the party on the matter is not easy to circulate among the public.

On party president

Meanwhile, another CWC meeting is to be held on Saturday to decided on the party’s successor who can take over the post of party president from the outgoing chief Rahul Gandhi. Names of AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, senior leaders Sushil Kumar Shinde, Mallikarjun Kharge and Ghulam Nabi Azad were doing the rounds for the post of interim president. The AICC will elect the new president and the CWC meeting on Saturday is likely to fix the date for next AICC session, too.

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