The Nagpur city Congress has successfully raised over Rs 2.5 lakh through a nationwide crowdfunding initiative aimed at enhancing collective participation. This funding will cover local expenses, including office operations, manpower for campaigns, and protests. To facilitate contributions, the party is sharing a QR code for easy access to donations.
Gudadhe Patil said the initiative was part of the All India Congress Committee’s ‘Sangathan Srijan Abhiyan’ for 2025-26, announced after the Ahmedabad session.
Praful Gudadhe, city Congress president said “This ends a long standing practice of the president alone raising funds and bearing the expenses. District presidents had already received a ten-day training covering their responsibilities, organisational work and fund management as part of the drive.
Gudadhe said, “At the 1920 Nagpur session, Gandhi created Congress’ organisational structure, the Block Congress Committee, the District Congress Committee, the Pradesh Congress Committee and the All India Congress Committee. Because of that, ordinary workers did not even dare,” he said, lakhs of rupees are spent every month to run a party in a large city, and.
On why public funding was the only way forward, he said the party’s founding identity required it. Gudadhe said, “Congress means the people. He said the current initiative revived a practice the party’s founder had established over a century ago. On what the practice had been before this initiative, Gudadhe said the nationwide pattern had shut ordinary workers out. Even if no one said it publicly, whoever was president would spend from his own pocket. Gudadhe said, “The pattern was the same across the entire country. Until people participate with body, mind and resources, Congress cannot stand up in a new way. ” On whether the change removed a barrier for grassroots workers aspiring to party office, Gudadhe said the AICC had made that opening explicit. This preparation is for exactly that,” he said.
Congress means agitation. For that agitation you need funds. Those funds should not belong to one person. They should belong to the people, to society. To fund this, there was a membership fee, the charkha membership. After Tilak’s death, Gandhi started the Tilak Smriti Fund and crowd-funding was collected from people in Tilak’s memory. This is an old concept for Congress. But in the middle period, Congress drifted away from this concept entirely. “Until now, none of the district or city Congress presidents in Nagpur or anywhere else used crowd-funding. He described how the structural flaw had made Congress presidents across India effectively private financiers for the party. Whoever became the district president, the entire responsibility fell on his shoulders and he had to spend from his own pocket. But this burden should not be on one person alone. People’s participation is essential. “The All India Congress Committee has accepted this change. An ordinary worker who does not have financial strength but has the ability to lead and to work among people, such an ordinary person can also become the president of this party.