Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday, constituted a consultative group with former prime minister Manmohan Singh as its chairman to deliberate on “current concerns” and formulate views and policy of the party on important issues.

Senior party leader Rahul Gandhi will  also be a part of the group along with other leaders like party general secretary KC Venugopal, ex-finance minister P Chidambaram and former ministers Manish Tewari and Jairam Ramesh.

Congress’ chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala will be the convener of this consultative group.

“The Congress president (Sonia Gandhi) has constituted a consultative group with Manmohan Singh as its chairman. The consultative group will meet virtually, normally every day, to deliberate on matters of current concern and formulate views of the party on various issues,” a communique from AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said.

The Congress’s other leaders Praveen Chakravarty, Gaurav Vallabh and Supriya Shrinate, and the party’s social media head Rohan Gupta are also part of the panel.

Meanwhile, today, former party president Rahul Gandhi tweeted calling the coronavirus pandemic “a huge challenge but also an opportunity”.

He said,  “The #Covid19 pandemic is a huge challenge but it is also an opportunity. We need to mobilise our huge pool of scientists, engineers & data experts to work on innovative solutions needed during the crisis (sic).”

The #Covid19 pandemic is a huge challenge but it is also an opportunity. We need to mobilise our huge pool of scientists, engineers & data experts to work on innovative solutions needed during the crisis.

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 18, 2020

Earlier, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday, had sought to assure the country of her party’s support and expressed confidence that with a strong morale, the country will emerge victorious against the crisis very soon.

Congress party had released a video message in which party chief Gandhi has urged countrymen to stay indoors, be safe and observe the lockdown stipulations, saying it will not be possible to win this battle without everyone’s support. Gandhi also thanked people for maintaining peace and patience while staying indoors.

She said, “Today, when the country is fighting such a big battle, every Congress worker understands his responsibility and is always ready to help every warrior in this fight. Anyone can ask for our support at the state level or at the central control room and every Congress worker will support you.”

“I assure you that whether the Congress party is in power or in opposition, we will stand by you anywhere in this battle. I am confident that, with a high morale, we will emerge from this crisis very soon. You stay at home and be safe,” she said in her video message in Hindi.