Gujarat to host AICC conclave - After 64 Years

Gujarat, the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, is set to host the All India Congress Committee (AICC) plenary session on April 8 and 9  - a historic event marking only the third time the state has been chosen for this significant gathering in the Indian National Congress’s 140-year history. The last time Gujarat welcomed the AICC session was 64 years ago, in 1961, making this a rare and symbolically charged occasion for the party as it seeks to reclaim political ground in a state dominated by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for over three decades.

The announcement came from Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh, who highlighted the party’s intent to use the session to address the “challenges posed by the anti-people policies of the BJP” while charting a roadmap for its future. The choice of Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s largest city and a political nerve center, is seen as a deliberate move to evoke the legacy of the freedom struggle and reassert the Congress’s historical roots in a state where it has struggled electorally since losing power in 1990.

The first AICC session in Gujarat took place in 1921 in Ahmedabad, presided over by Hakim Ajmal Khan during a pivotal moment in India’s independence movement. That session, held amidst the fervor of the Non-Cooperation Movement led by Mahatma Gandhi, saw the Congress galvanize mass support against British rule. The second occurred in 1961 in Bhavnagar, under the presidency of Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, when the party was at the height of its post-independence dominance, with Jawaharlal Nehru as Prime Minister. The 1961 session focused on economic planning and socialism, reflecting the Congress’s vision for a newly independent India.

Now, in 2025, the third AICC session in Gujarat comes at a time when the Congress is striving to regain relevance in the state. The BJP has held an iron grip on Gujarat since 1998, bolstered by the rise of Narendra Modi, who served as Chief Minister from 2001 to 2014 before becoming Prime Minister. The Congress’s last significant electoral showing in Gujarat was in 2017, when it won 77 seats in the state assembly—its best performance in decades—but it still fell short of dislodging the BJP. In the 2022 assembly elections, the party plummeted to a historic low of 17 seats, underscoring its diminishing influence in Modi’s home state.

Political analysts view the upcoming AICC session as a strategic effort by the Congress to reconnect with Gujarat’s voters. “Hosting the session in Ahmedabad is a bold statement,” said Professor Anil Trivedi, a political scientist at Gujarat University. “It’s an attempt to invoke the legacy of Gandhi and Patel, both of whom were Gujarati icons and Congress stalwarts, and to challenge the BJP’s narrative of Gujarat as its unassailable fortress.”

The session is expected to draw thousands of delegates from across India, including top leaders like Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Party insiders say the agenda will focus on economic inequality, unemployment, and what the Congress calls the BJP’s “divisive politics.” A key highlight will be the articulation of a renewed vision for Gujarat, where the party hopes to capitalise on local grievances such as farmer distress and industrial slowdowns.

The Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC), led by President Shaktisinh Gohil, has begun preparations in earnest. “This is a moment of pride for Gujarat and an opportunity for us to showcase our commitment to the people,” Gohil said at a press conference in Ahmedabad. The event will be held at a large venue near the Sabarmati Riverfront, with plans for public rallies to amplify the Congress’s message.

The historical resonance of the occasion is not lost on party veterans. “Gujarat gave India its greatest leaders in the freedom struggle, and the Congress was born from that soil,” said 78-year-old Arjun Modhwadia, a former GPCC president. “After 64 years, this session is a chance to remind people of our legacy and fight for their future.” Modhwadia recalled the 1961 Bhavnagar session, which he attended as a young volunteer, noting its focus on unity and progress—themes the party aims to revive in 2025.

However, the road ahead is fraught with challenges. The BJP, led in Gujarat by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, has dismissed the Congress’s plans as a “desperate gimmick.” State BJP spokesperson Yamal Vyas quipped, “The Congress can hold a hundred sessions, but Gujarat’s people have chosen development over empty promises.” The ruling party is likely to counter the AICC event with its own mobilization, ensuring a charged political atmosphere in April.

For the Congress, the stakes are high. Gujarat’s 26 Lok Sabha seats and 182 assembly seats are critical battlegrounds in national and state politics. The party’s lone Lok Sabha victory in the state in 2024, Banaskantha, won by Geniben Thakor, offered a glimmer of hope, but it remains an outlier in a sea of saffron. The AICC session could serve as a launching pad for the 2027 state elections, where the Congress aims to reverse its fortunes.

As Ahmedabad prepares to host this historic gathering, the Congress hopes to turn the page on decades of electoral drought in Gujarat. Whether the echoes of 1921 and 1961 can inspire a resurgence in 2025 remains to be seen, but for now, the party is betting on its past to shape its future in the state that once defined its identity.