The newly elected 77 district presidents from Tamil Nadu left for Delhi on Tuesday for a special orientation program ahead of the assembly elections.
Leaders said the party had launched a “massive organizational overhaul” and “aggressive grassroots mobilisation” aimed at revitalizing its booth-level machinery.
Earlier, there was a top-level reshuffle under the Sangathana Srijana Abhiyan (SSA) – an internal organizational reshuffle was carried out between October and December – with an expanded booth-level outreach plan that envisaged up to 14 workers per booth and two volunteers per street to engage voters, explain policy positions and counter the BJP’s narrative. Party leaders believe the exercise will help rejuvenate the Congress by re-establishing its connect with the electorate from the ground up.
Under the SSA, the Congress restructured its district units nationwide, identified active local leaders and elevated them to organizational roles. Of the 77 district presidents appointed last month, only six were retained from the previous arrangement, while most of the new appointees are under the age of 50 and from local backgrounds, sources said. The newly appointed presidents are tasked with overseeing booth-level operations in their districts and are attending a one-day orientation program in Delhi along with leaders from other states.
L. Rex, councilor and president of the Congress constituency for Tiruchi (Urban), one of the six retained leaders, said the organizational reforms had energized the grassroots cadres. “The changes at the top have given confidence to the workers at the booth level. A 10-day special camp is planned for the district presidents after the elections,” he said.
However, some leaders have expressed concerns about the timing of the initiative. The Congress MLA from the central region said the overhaul came too close to the elections, leaving limited time for the new district presidents to familiarize themselves with local dynamics and booth-level functionaries. A senior Congress leader from Aranthangi in Pudukkottai district said that while the restructuring was a welcome move, the established networks built by former district presidents would be difficult to dismantle in a short period of time.
At the booth level, the party plans to deploy one Booth Level Agent-2 (BLA-2) for voter list verification, in addition to nine to 14 workers at the booth level depending on local capacity, with two workers assigned on the street. Each booth will have a designated digital agent to monitor the status of voters, including assisting families in obtaining death certificates where necessary, said the district president from the Delta area.
A senior official said the awareness drive is being carried out in areas where Congress MLAs, councilors and representatives of local bodies have influence, while the entire operation is being monitored by the party’s IT wing from its headquarters in Delhi and Chennai. Booth-level workers are tasked with spreading the party’s stance and highlighting what leaders describe as the Narendra Modi ministry’s “anti-people policies”.
Party officials said the aim was to create a direct and permanent channel of communication with voters that would remain in place after the election.
Published – 09 Feb 2026 21:57 IST
