In BJP bastion, CWC roadmap to combat Hindutva politics with 'Nyaypath'

In a significant political push — not seen in the recent past — from the heart of Gujarat, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) met at Ahmedabad's on Tuesday with two key objectives: to reclaim the legacy of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and to craft a clear roadmap to counter the BJP’s Hindutva politics through the concept of 'Nyaypath (path of justice)'.

The party passed a seven-point resolution squarely challenging the BJP’s appropriation of Patel’s legacy. This marked a historic return for the Congress in Gujarat. Following Tuesday’s CWC meeting, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) session will be convened in the state after 64 years — on the banks of the Sabarmati. The last AICC session in Gujarat was held in Bhavnagar in 1971.

For a city long seen as a BJP bastion, Ahmedabad was visibly transformed. Congress flags, posters, and banners dominated the skyline. “I’ve never seen so many Congress posters here,” said Savan, a tea-seller on Ashram Road, as party workers flooded the streets in a rare display of confidence.

Several Congress leaders told NH that the choice of Ahmedabad was deliberate: a bold move to confront Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his home turf. The resolution passed today reflected this confrontational tone.

Drawing a stinging comparison between BJP rule and British colonialism, particularly in the treatment of farmers, the party accused the Modi government of enacting policies that echo colonial repression: diluting the Right to Fair Compensation Act, bulldozing the now-repealed three farm laws, and betraying the promise of a minimum support price law.

“The BJP government today mimics the cruel British policies against farmers — whether it’s weakening land acquisition laws, imposing the anti-farmer black laws, or blocking farmers’ protests with barricades, spikes, and trenches,” the resolution stated.

The Congress also pushed back against what it called a “manufactured narrative” of conflict between Sardar Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru. “The BJP survives on false binaries and divisive propaganda. But the truth is clear: Gandhi, Nehru, and Patel were united in vision and action — pillars of the freedom struggle and architects of modern India,” it said.

The resolution accused the BJP of systematically fragmenting India’s unity by fomenting divisions — North vs South, East vs West, language against language, culture against culture. “This is not nationalism — it is calculated fragmentation,” the party warned.

The Congress further accused the Modi government of launching an all-out assault on workers’ rights, once again comparing its policies to British-era suppression.

“From undermining MGNREGA to systematically weakening labour laws, the BJP has shown open contempt for the working class,” the resolution said. “It is a sinister campaign to trample on the dignity of India’s labour force.”

In a scathing critique of Modi's much-touted 'Gujarat Model', the Congress alleged that the state’s industrial ecosystem had been gutted to benefit a few crony capitalists. “Gujarat’s entrepreneurial spirit has been hijacked. The BJP has used India’s treasury to enrich a select few, leading to obscene levels of wealth concentration,” it said.

Looking ahead, the party called for a renewed commitment from its cadre across the country.

“Millions of Congress workers are more determined than ever to walk the Nyaypath — the path of justice. In our fight to defend the Constitution and democracy, we draw strength from the legacy of Sardar Patel,” the resolution concluded.

Gujarat watchers say Nyaypath is the new mantra. It’s not just a strategy to counter the BJP’s dominance, but also signals an internal transformation, with the party aiming to empower grassroots organisations and rebuild from the bottom up. “The AICC will deliberate on how this powerful idea can be translated into a winning electoral formula,” said a Gujarat Congress leader.