'Old days' of Congress in national capital will return soon: Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Lovely

Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely on Wednesday said they are working to fix the 'communication gap' between the workers and leaders here and the 'old days' of the party in the national capital will return soon.

In an interview with PTI, Lovely said the coordinators appointed with the aim to restructure the party unit have been meeting with its workers and leaders at the district and block levels and addressing their concerns.

'There is a communication gap between the workers and leaders. Right now, we have to make sure that we sit with those workers and address their problems and grievances. The newly appointed coordinators are on the ground and engaging with them. Hopefully, the gap in communication will be fixed soon,' he said.

'The old days of the party in the national capital will return soon,' the Congress leader added.

In September, the Congress appointed coordinators for all seven Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi to help restructure the party in the national capital.

They are Rahul Richchariya for Chandni Chowk, Ghulam Hussain Khalak for South Delhi, Sunny Malik for Northwest Delhi, Chiman Bhai Vinjhuda for Northeast Delhi, Hakubha Jadeja for New Delhi, Sanjeev Sharma for East Delhi and Uma Shankar Pandey for West Delhi.

Speaking about leaders and workers from AAP and the BJP joining the Congress, Lovely claimed, 'Leaders and workers who joined the Delhi Congress recently had approached us to return to the party. Several requests are pending as well. Many other leaders who defected earlier will return to the party soon.' 'A lot is happening at the grassroots level,' he told PTI.

Asked if the joining of AAP leaders and workers will have an impact on the INDIA opposition bloc, Lovely said those who defected from AAP to the Congress will still remain part of the alliance.

The Delhi Congress president said the party will hold important meetings from November and that he will be visiting every block and meet all workers personally.

'I am happy that all the members of Congress, former MLAs, former counsellors, block presidents and others are cooperating with us. Those who excel in their roles will continue to be entrusted with important tasks. I am very certain that our organisation will be fully prepared in the next few months,' he said.

Lovely was first elected as an MLA in 1998 from the Gandhi Nagar seat. He worked closely with former chief minister late Shiela Dikshit.

He served as the transport, education, urban development and revenue minister during the Congress regime in Delhi. He has served as the Delhi Congress chief earlier as well.

Lovely was fielded against the BJP's Gautam Gambhir and the AAP's Atishi from the East Delhi constituency in the 2019 Lok Sabha election.