NEW DELHI: As the Congress stepped into the 125th year on Monday, Congress President Sonia Gandhi laid the foundation-stone for a new headquarters for the party at Feroz Shah Kotla in the Capital. Congress President Sonia Gandhi unveiled by a remote the foundation stone for the proposed new party headquarters complex. The party has till now been operating from out of a Government bungalow in the Lutyen’s Delhi, which has since been outlawed and all political parties have been advised to be relocated. The Congress functioned for a long time from Pandit Motilal Nehru’s residence Swaraj Bhavan in Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. After Independence, the party headquarters was located in 7, Jantar-Mantar Road in the Capital. After the split in the Congress in 1969, the party got a new headquarters on 24, Akbar Road in the Capital. With the new fiat to relocate the party headquarters, it has decided to build its own complex. Started on Dec. 28, 1885, by O V Hume, W C Banerjee was the first Congress President. Starting as a party of prayers and petitions, it was for the first time transformed into a mass-based party under Mahatma Gandhi since 1919. The Congress under Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the resolution on Purna Swaraj or Complete Independence was passed on December 28, 1929, and Jan. 26, 1930 was celebrated as the Independence Day. With the country getting Independence on Aug. 15, 1947, Jan. 26, 1950, was designated as the Republic Day, when the country adopted a new Constitution.
To mark the occasion, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi addressed a rally in the Capital. Sonia Gandhi described the Congress as a "national revolution," which led the country to Independence from Imperialist rule and always stood for secular values. "The party has always promoted secularism through a consensual approach and has stood for protection of rights of the poor," she said. The party has also played a major role in laying the foundation of Modern India, she said.
Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh highlighted the important roles by various Congress leaders in the country's pre- and post-Independence history. He also highlighted the steps taken by the Congress Government in the critical fields of health, education, employment and development. "Economic stability has also been the focus area of the party and it is our endeavor to fulfill the dreams of Rajiv Gandhi in the 21st century," he said.
The Congress has drawn up elaborate programs for the year-old celebrations and its units at the block, district and State levels have been asked to hold special functions to galvanize the cadre and rekindle the spirit of the Congress. The construction of the new office is expected to be completed by the end of next year.
