Bangalore: The complete routing of Congress candidates in recent by- elections in Karnataka (2) and Gujarat (1) left the party in chaos and mourning for the loss of prestige. Resignations of leaders followed the debacles, and queered the pitch in both states. The leaders have no clue as to what went wrong even after a ‘Bellary Chalo’march successfully ending in a huge public meeting.

The road back to popularity appeared far away and a thorough overhauling of KPCC appeared imminent amidst party (internal) elections in state at many levels. Enter Ram Manohar Lohia Vedike.
U.R. Ananth Murthy, an educationist and reformer, wanted Congress to bring youth leaders into the party to survive. He was in favour of assigning the “young” state unit, to the care of Siddaramaiah, a Kuruba (Dalit) leader. Appropriate representation of youths from various communities was the recipe, the distinguished Jnan Peeth awardee and a writer with a large fallowing, held out. He asked the Congress High Command (Sonia Gandhi leading) to identify young and promising leaders for a bright future that was only waiting to come to them, in near future. The fallen party needs a time-frame act of rejuvenation (like massaging), he suggested.
The elderly litterateur saw G. Parameshwar, Krishna Byre Gowda, N.A Harris and Dinesh Gundu Rao among others, who could partner D.K Shivakumar and Siddu, at state level.
The Lohia Vedike, where a brain-storming session was held in Bangalore on Saturday, to revive sagging Congress in state (once a fortress of the fallen heroes), B.S Shivanna, Vedike chairman, suggested a total revamp of the Congress Party, led by Rahul Gandhi.
Writer Baraguru Ramchandrappa advocated a Think-Tank in Congress, to give a new life to the age-old party.