Addressing party leaders and workers at the party headquarters in Indira Bhawan, he said that India has become the largest democracy in the world because of the great Congress leadership.
“Today, on Foundation Day, I want to say one thing clearly to those who say ‘Congress is done’. I want to tell them that our power may be less, but our backbone is still straight. We have not compromised; not with the Constitution, not with secularism and not with the rights of the poor. We may not be in power, but we will not negotiate,” he said.
Opposition Leader in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said Congress is not just a political party but the voice of Indian soul which has supported every weak, deprived and hardworking person.
He attended the 140th Foundation Day celebrations at the party’s Indira Bhawan headquarters here
In a message on “Warmest greetings to every Congress Member on the Foundation Day of the Indian National Congress today. We pay tribute to that historical legacy and those great sacrifices that won freedom for India, laid the foundation of the Constitution and strengthened the values of democracy, secularism, social justice and equality,” he added.
Senior Congress leaders are seen during the party’s 140th foundation anniversary in New Delhi on December 28, 2025. | Photo credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Noting that the Congress has never asked for votes in the name of religion, Mr. Kharge asserted that the party has never spread hatred in the name of the temple-mosque.
“Congress unites. BJP divides. Congress kept religion only as faith. But some people turned religion into politics. Today, BJP has power, but they don’t have the truth. That’s why sometimes data is hidden, sometimes census is stopped, sometimes talks take place about changing the Constitution,” he said.
The Congress president said that those who deliver speeches on history today, their ancestors fled from history. “The Congress is an ideology and ideologies never die,” he asserted.
Mr Kharge also said that the year 2025 was the centenary of Mahatma Gandhi becoming Congress President, the 75th year of the adoption of the Constitution and the 150th birth anniversary of Vande Mataram.
He said the year 2026 is the 200th anniversary of Dadabhai Naoroji, the centenary of Sarojini Naidu becoming Congress President and also the centenary of the song ‘Jhanda Uucha Rahe Hamara’, which was first sung during the Kanpur Congress session in December 1925.
Noting that around the time of India’s independence, many countries gained freedom, the Congress President pointed out that some countries failed while in others dictatorship prevailed.
“Only India is such a country where democracy is vibrant. It is because of the great leaders of Congress that India has become the largest democracy in the world,” he asserted.
Mr Kharge said the Indian National Congress has always been committed to the welfare, empowerment and inclusive development of the people of India. “We strongly believe in equal opportunities in political, economic and social rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.”
“The 140-year-old glorious history of the Indian National Congress tells the great story of truth, non-violence, sacrifice, struggle and patriotism,” he said, while extending his best wishes to every Indian on the Congress Foundation Day.
Several Congress leaders, including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal and Ajay Maken, were present at the meeting to commemorate the party’s 140th founding anniversary.
Senior Congress leaders Shashi Tharoor and Digvijaya Singh attended the event, while Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was not present at the meeting.
Published – Dec 28, 2025 3:01 PM IST
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