Congress sets up departments to reach out to professionals, unorganised sector

The Congress on Tuesday created two new organisational departments to reach out to professionals and workers in the unorganised sector.

The All India Professionals Congress will be headed by MP Shashi Tharoor, and the All India Unorganised Workers Congress by Arbind Singh, a party statement said.

Briefing media persons, Tharoor said that there is a "vast gulf in our country that separates those who get into the professions of the civil services, journalism and those who enter politics", noting those who may be interested in politics staying detached from it because they have no access to the political world.

This, he said, "leaves out of Indian politics the very group of people who are the mainstay of democratic politics in most other democracies".

"They have bright minds, they have political ideas but they have no idea how to connect with the political process. They feel that the political process has no room for them.

"We have something like 3.2 crore individual tax-payers and 4 lakh corporate assessees in this country, and they have an interest in what is happening to their taxes, what is happening in the country.... they do not have avenues to express these initiatives," he said.

The new department will have city or town level chapters, he said, adding anyone interested can log on to their website: professionalscongress.com and join by confirming they are practising professionals and tax-payers with a PAN number.

He said that the party will charge a fellowship fee of Rs 1,000, and give a membership number and a place in a chapter, adding that there may be multiple chapters, with a minimum membership of at least 25 and a maximum of not more than 100.

The office-bearers will meet on Wednesday to chalk their strategy and also meet party Vice President Rahul Gandhi, he said.

--IANS

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