Indian National Congress | |
Party Flag | |
President | Raihan Gandhi |
Lok Sabha leader | Bhairavi Mirchandani |
Rajya Sabha leader | Rajendra Munshi |
Headquarters | 24, Akbar Road, New Delhi 110001 |
Youth Wing | Indian Youth Congress |
Membership (2039) | 51,720,000 |
Ideology |
|
Political Position | Centre-left wing |
Colours |
|
Lok Sabha | 161 / 607
|
Rajya Sabha | 49 / 250
|
The Indian National Congress (INC), often called the Congress Party, is a broadly based political party in India. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Empire in Asia and Africa. From the late 19th century, and especially after 1920, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, Congress became the principal leader of the Indian independence movement, with over 15 million members and over 70 million participants. Congress led India to independence from Great Britain, and powerfully influenced other anti-colonial nationalist movements in the British Empire.
Congress is a secular party whose social liberal platform is generally considered to be on the centre-left of Indian politics. Congress' social policy is based upon the Gandhian principle of Sarvodaya—the lifting up of all sections of society—which involves the improvement of the lives of economically underprivileged and socially marginalised people. The party primarily endorses social liberalism—seeking to balance individual liberty and social justice, and secularism—asserting the right to be free from religious rule and teachings.