New Delhi: Congress general secretary Sachin Pilot on Sunday said the party is witnessing a gradual generational shift, with young leaders increasingly taking charge of key responsibilities. He said that such a transition doesn't happen overnight but is a continuous process already underway.

Speaking to a news agency ahead of the AICC session in Ahmedabad, Pilot said young leaders were stepping up to responsibilities within the party and delivering results. "Any shift is never overnight but a gradual one," he said when asked if the time had come for a generational change within the Congress. Pilot said the Congress is consciously working towards strengthening its base among backward classes, women, youth, SCs, STs and minorities, sections that make up the largest chunk of India's population.

"The party has committed itself to strengthening the backwards, young people, women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities. These are the sections that form the largest chunks of our population and adequate representation of those sections is crucial,"

he said.

"At the party forum, we adopted the Udaipur declaration and are adhering to that. In all party appointments we are keeping that declaration in mind. The (generational) shift is happening automatically, there are many people who are now taking on leadership roles whether it is within Parliament or outside Parliament, whether in states or new people appointed in AICC, young people are now taking on leadership roles and are living up to the task," he added.

Pilot said the Congress is working to give young people more political power in the party. "Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka (Gandhi Vadra) ji are taking active interest in the functioning of the party, departments and frontal organisations like the IYC, NSUI, Sewa Dal, Mahila Congress and so on. We have committed ourselves to making 2025 as the year of rejuvenating and enthusing the party cadre; and we are going to see more ideological strengthening of the party, giving effective people more responsibilities and ensuring that those who are not up to the task make way for people that are working hard and performing," Pilot said.

Further, Pilot said that accountability and ideological clarity would be the party's guiding principles going forward. "There will be a constant review of who's performing and not performing. For example, in Rajasthan we have taken a decision that any office bearer of the party who does not attend three party meetings consecutively without proper reason, that person has to let go and give space to someone else," the Congress general secretary said.

Pilot said party's 2025 agenda, as declared in the Belagavi conclave, is focused on organisational empowerment, including filling vacant posts and energising the cadre. District Congress committee chiefs, he said, will play a bigger role in elections, financial management, and candidate selection.