NEW DELHI: Even as the Congress is holding three-day Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir in Rajasthan’s Udaipur, the grand old party faced a major jolt as Gandhi family loyalists and one of the senior Punjab leaders Sunil Jakhar announced to quit the party.
Jakhar, who was earlier Punjab Congress Chief, announced his decision to quit the party in a Facebook live titled ‘Dil ki Baat’.
Talking about his resignation he said, “I heard the speech of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi which was an emotional message. She stated that exceptional situations need exceptional solutions. But after looking at the entire day’s programme of the Chintan Shivir, it seems more like fulfilling a formality.”
He stated the party should have held a ‘Chinta Shivir’, and not a ‘Chintan Shivir’.
The former Punjab Congress chief said the top leadership of the Congress hardly knew or wanted to find out ways to save the party.
The three-time MLA and one-time Lok Sabha MP, Jakhar also lambasted senior party leader Ambika Soni. “Her statement on the repercussions of having a Hindu Chief Minister in Punjab is one of main reasons for the party’s drubbing in the state assembly polls earlier this year,” he proclaimed.
“I can see Ambika Soni is sitting beside you (Sonia Gandhi) in ‘Chintan Shivir’. You must ask her all these reasons,” he said.
Jakhar also said that he was heartbroken at being removed from all party posts by the Congress disciplinary committee following allegations of anti-party activities against him by certain Punjab unit leaders.
He opined that Congress should have formed an additional committee to look for reasons as to why it failed miserably in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections 2022.
Praising former party chief Rahul Gandhi, Jakhar said, “He is a good person.”
The 68-year-old politician appealed to Rahul to take command of the party once again, while keeping a distance from “chaploos log” (sycophants)