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Any alternative form of opposition-alliance will include Congress, said Sharad Pawar

Sharad Pawar

An important statement came from Sharad Pawar over the speculations rife on opposition-coalition after the Rashtra Manch meeting of June 22, which was attended by leaders from various parties and certain nationally prominent luminaries.

On Friday, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar said that even though alliances were not discussed at the meeting (June 22) in his Delhi residence any alternative force of opposition will include Congress. This may be counted as a symbol of hope for resurgence of the Congress.

Also Read: Congress plans for early July-“Nationwide protest and Covid care programme”

Pawar said, “Alliance was not discussed in the meeting (Rashtra Manch meeting) but if an alternative force is to be raised, it will be done only by taking Congress together. We need power like that and I had said this in that meeting.”

On June 22, a collection of opposition parties known as the ‘Rashtra Manch’ met at Pawar’s Delhi residence. The meeting lasted over two hours. It was attended by Omar Abdullah from National Conference, Samajwadi Party’s (SP) Ghanshyam Tiwari, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Jayant Chaudhary, Sushil Gupta from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Binoy Viswam from the Communist Party of India (CPI), Nilotpal Basu from CPI(M) and Sinha. Other prominent luminaries who attended the meeting were Javed Akhtar, Retired Justice AP Shah, and ambassador KP Singh. Pawar gave the statements on alliance after reports emerged of Congress’s absence from the June 22 meeting.

The meeting attracted much attention and media coverage. But, NCP leaders dismissed the speculations surrounding the meetings as “over-hyped and highly speculative”. NCP leader Majid Menon said, “It was not an anti-BJP political front meeting called by Sharad Pawar. It was a meeting of Rashtriya Manch held at his residence. Like-minded individuals or people with the same ideology attended the meeting and there were several apolitical personalities present in the meeting.”

Also Read: Possibility of National front after SAD links with Shiv Sena and other parties from across India over Farmers’ protests

Pawar’s party is part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra along with Congress and Shiv Sena. He also responded to Congress leader Nana Patole’s claims of fighting future elections in the state alone.

In his response, he said, “Every political party has the right to expand itself. To increase the energy of our party workers we also make such statements. Similarly, if Congress says something like that (to fight next elections alone) we welcome it because it’s their right (to expand their party).”

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Congress plans for early July-“Nationwide protest and Covid care programme”

Sonia_Gandhi

Early next month, Congress party will launch nationwide protests against economic issues like inflation and rising fuel prices. The party would expand its Covid outreach to cover 3 crore households in 30 days. After Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s meeting with top party officials on Thursday, people familiar with the matter said that this would be a major political manoeuvre to make its presence felt on ground after losing elections in Kerala, West Bengal and Assam.

Also See: Are Covid vaccines magnetic? Facts you should know related to coronavirus

Gandhi referred extensively to the Covid19 pandemic in her opening address at the meeting with the party’s general secretaries, state in-charges and state leadership. Sonia Gandhi stressed that it was “absolutely essential that our party plays an active role” to ensure full vaccination coverage and encourage people to register for the jabs. In addition, the Congress should also continue to put pressure on the government to treble the daily rate of vaccination to ensure at least 75% of India’s population is inoculated at the end of 2021.”

She also asked the leaders to give “urgent attention” and take “provocative measures” in the context of a possible third wave of the Covid virus. She said, “We have to take steps to be better prepared if and when this strikes. The second wave these past four months has been devastating for lakhs and lakhs of individual families all over the country. We must learn from this traumatic experience so that we do not have to experience it yet again.”

Also Read: Congress leader wrote another letter to Modi-worrisome trend of Mucormycosis in post-Covid cases

In her opening remarks, Gandhi said, “No doubt, this is dependent entirely on the adequacy of vaccine supply. We must continue to put pressure on the Union government which has, at our Party’s insistence, finally taken on the responsibility for this. At the same time, we have to ensure that registration takes place, that vaccine hesitancy wherever evident is overcome and vaccine wastage is minimized.”

Sonia Gandhi also spoke about the “intolerable burden being imposed by rising fuel prices” and how “prices of many other essential commodities like pulses and edible oils too have skyrocketed causing wide-spread distress.”

Indian National Congress followed up the concern, announcing that it will launch a 10-day-long nationwide agitation from July 7 with programmes at block, district and state levels. The grand old party’s frontal organizations will also step up. A cycle yatra at district levels, march and processions at state level would be organized. Even a signature campaign at petrol pumps to demand reduction of prices of petrol and diesel would be part of this programme.

A senior Congress leader said that the party has not been able to carry out “political activities” due to Covid19 restrictions and that it needs to get back in the game.

The leader who was present at Thursday’s meeting said, “We did campaign in the recent assembly elections, but round-the-year movements were missing. And in some states, lack of opposition activities has been a key reason for electoral losses.”

Also Read: “Who took money in Rafale scam, who deleted anti-corruption clauses & who gave middlemen access to the defence documents”, asked Rahul Gandhi

The party’s Covid19 care campaign, which asks each volunteer to reach out to more than 200 households every day for a month, is targeted to cover 7,199 blocks and 7,935 towns across the country’s 736 districts. The campaign is a part of the plan detailed in a circular on Thursday by general secretary organization KC Venugopal.

In the urban and semi-urban areas, under its Covid19 care programme, Congress wants to approach “auto/battery and cycle rickshaw drivers, plumbers, electricians, gardeners, mechanics, domestic workers, slum dwellers, delivery boys and street vendors”.

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What’s the rumpus between Punjab Congress and Navjot Singh Sidhu

Navjot Singh Sidhu

Congress in Punjab is facing a possible friction between Navjot Singh Sidhu and the present CM of the state. On Sunday, the former minister asserted that he was as much a traditional Congress man as any of his detractors within the party.

Patience of Amritsar-MLA may be wearing thin as the Congress high command looks to pacify the feuding leaders and “suitably accommodate” Navjot Sidhu, as recommended by a party panel ten days ago. In his latest discussion with media channels and national dailies, Sidhu castigated the Punjab CM, talked about his vision and played an artful dodger on his next course of action.

Navjot Singh Sidhu was the minister of Local Government, Tourism and Cultural Affairs in Punjab from March 16, 2017 to July 20, 2019. To end the crisis in the Punjab Congress, the party high command is currently carrying out brainstorming sessions about the permutations and combinations of leaders, locations and profiles. In an ongoing conflict and tussle between Sidhu and CM Capt Amarinder Singh, the former tourism and culture minister of Punjab clarified that he was not eyeing any position in Congress or the state government. Sidhu also pointed out that he was “not a showpiece” which can be used to win elections and then “selfish vested interests can override the interests of Punjab”.

Navjot Sidhu also stated that he was willing to be a Zila parishad member, let alone become PPCC president, if his agenda is followed for Punjab’s development.

Also Read: Akali dal-BSP alliance chalked up for upcoming Punjab election

On a query on reports suggesting that he was keen on the post of PPCC president, Sidhu answered, “There is no truth in these reports. In 17 years of my political career, I have never sought any position. It is nothing but a bid to divert attention from the real issues. I joined the Congress in 2016 on the assurance that my pro-people agenda would be fulfilled. Prashant Kishor met me many times in this regard. The corrupt system controlled by two power families in the state is not allowing any change, but I will not give up.”

Sidhu also stated that there has been a constancy of purpose of his political career to observe and change the system. He alleged that the system in Punjab is being run by two families who are belittling the legislature.

Stressing over his familial ties with Congress, Sidhu stated that his father and mother were Congress leaders. He added that his parents had devoted 42 years of their life to the party. On his disconnect and rift with Punjab Congress, Sidhu added rhetoric, “Who is the CM to slam the door on me? Is he the Congress?” He further commented that he never received a response to any of his tweets on issues such as the sacrilege cases, sand mafia, transport mafia and the big fish involved in the drug trade.

Sidhu clarified that his agenda is to stop the loot of public money. He stated that he is willing to stay behind Punjab-CM if his (Sidhu’s) 13-point agenda is followed and implemented. He further commented that the state government should crush the sand mafia and make the sand cheaper. On Sand mafia, he commented that he has been told that there is no sand mafia, but only transport mafia, as the sands need truck to be transported. Sidhu also suggested, on the “removal of the parity in taxes between the government-run buses and those ‘illegally’ run by the Badals.”

He also alleged that his suggestion on illegal encroachment was ignored. On the issue of drug-menace in Punjab, he said that there was a special task force report. He claimed that Jagdish Bhola was giving statements against Bikram Singh Majithia, with the court saying that there was prima facie evidence against Majithia. But, the system had not even read the report, as alleged by Sidhu.

Also Read: Drug menace- the wider picture – Is there a way out

Sidhu also stated that many red herrings have been thrown about his meeting with party high command, but actually there are no meetings in the upcoming days. He also added that he has received many offers from the party high command, but he has rejected all of them.

Navjot Singh Sidhu stressed that it is not about post, but about a roadmap to resurrect Punjab to its former glory.

The rift between Navjot Sidhu and Capt. Amarinder Singh is significant and particularly problematic for the Congress prior to the assembly election in Punjab due next year.

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Congress leader wrote another letter to Modi-worrisome trend of Mucormycosis in post-Covid cases

Rahul-gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, in a letter to Modi has again hit out at the centre. Mr. Gandhi has castigated the centre over its lack of a clear vaccination strategy, which has placed India in a dangerous position.

Also Read: “Who took money in Rafale scam, who deleted anti-corruption clauses & who gave middlemen access to the defence documents”, asked Rahul Gandhi

In the letter Rahul Gandhi has stated, “Your government’s lack of a clear and coherent Covid and vaccination strategy, as well as its hubris in declaring premature victory as the virus was exponentially spreading, has placed India in a highly dangerous position. Today the disease is growing explosively. It is currently on the verge of overwhelming all of our systems. GOI’s failures have made another devastating national lockdown almost inevitable.”

Also See: New mutants of Coronavirus

Mr. Gandhi also added that with the number of Covid19 cases exploding, the government’s failures have pushed the country towards a complete lockdown.

He urged the PM to rapidly vaccinate the entire population. He also wrote, “I am compelled to write to you once more as the Covid tsunami continues to ravage our country unabated. In such an unprecedented crisis, the people of India must be your foremost priority. I urge you to do everything in your power to stop the needless suffering that our people are going through.”

In a sordid twist to the Covid19 horror tale in India, many patients in the country are suffering from a fungal infection, which is triggered by the Coronavirus infection.

Also Read: Mucormycosis, a rare Fungal Infection linked to COVID-19 having 50% mortality rate: Symptoms and Prevention

Mucormycosis, a potentially fatal fungal infection, with a mortality rate of over 50% is caused by Mucormycete moulds, which easily infects immune-compromised people. Since, Covid19 causes harm to immunity and also triggers to some extent an autoimmune disorder, the patients who recover from Covid19 have higher chances of contracting Mucormycosis. In one such case in Parel, a young patient who had recovered from Covid19 had contracted the fungal disease. His upper jaw had to be removed in Global hospital so as to prevent the spread of infection from reaching his brain.

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Criticisms foment against the comments made by Tejasvi Surya in BBMP war room

BBMP_COVID war room

In the south zone war room in BBMP in Bengaluru, the comments made by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya and another BJP leader, on Tuesday, had attracted headlines and criticisms from across the country. Congress MP criticized Surya but in somewhat meak terms, which was not liked by many among the Twitteratti.

In Bengaluru, an activist, B Balan has filed a case against Surya for provoking communal tensions in the middle of the second wave of the pandemic. Additionally, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain and party MLAs Krishna Byre Gowda and Zameer Ahmed Khan have filed a complaint stating that the speeches of the BJP leaders clearly targeted a particular community
In the ruckus created at the war room in BBMP, Surya and the other BJP leader was heard speaking about bed blocking scam where 17 people from Muslim community were allocated beds. The leaders were heard comparing the BBMP war room with a madrassa. As the reactions started pouring in over this incident, an audio clip surfaced which allegedly showed Surya apologizing for inconvenience, which has been denied by the office of BJP MP.

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Fall of Congress and Left in West Bengal election- a brief overview

Cong-left

When Trinamool Congress led by Mamata Banerjee claimed landslide victory in West Bengal for the third time in a row, their primary challenger, the BJP will be consoling themselves by looking at the meteoric rate at which they have made their inroads into the state. BJP had won a mere 3 seats in the 2016 Assembly polls and were bolstered to around 80 seats in 2021.

The Left-Congress-ISF alliance, or the Sanjukta Morcha or the jot, has been left decimated. The alliance is currently on course to win either one seat, or none at all.

Also Read: Post-election violence in West Bengal at Arambagh, Nandigram, Natabari, Beleghata

In 2016, the Left-front had won 32 seats, and the Congress 44. The combined fall for both of them to the tune of 75-76 seats is a massive one. They were not in with a real shot at coming to power, but this is a debacle by the yardstick of even their most conservative expectations.

Over last decade, a Left-to-Right worker-shift phenomenon has occurred in West Bengal, in which longtime Left workers and voters alike were migrating to the BJP. The shift of the Left voters towards the right had helped the BJP across Bengal in 2019. In 2021 though, it is the consolidation of the anti-BJP voters that has proved decisive in certain regions of the state.

Also Read: Sitakulchi firing-Facts on the ground do not add up with the claims by the central forces

In any election where only two parties have any reasonable shot at coming to power, a third-party/alliance is likely to take a hit, especially since voters will not perceive that option as “really being in the race.”

The TMC-BJP binary on the key narratives of this election, such as “minority appeasement” and “Bangali vs bohiragoto (outsider)” further reinforced this and ensured that the Left was not really in the conversation that voters were having.

A large citizens’ campaign called ‘No Vote to BJP’ urged voters in the state to cast their ballot in favour of the strongest non-BJP alternative, as did rallies by protesting farmer leaders like Rakesh Tikait. But Left leaders and workers seemed miffed about campaigns like ‘No Vote to BJP’, as this does not chalk out an alternative to the BJP.

For example, Aishe Ghosh had remarked that, “When you do not tell the people what the alternative is, the problem lies there.”

Also Read: West Bengal is a tough battlefield for BJP-an overview from historical, cultural & economic standpoints

In a political subtext, the concern among the Left-Congress-ISF alliance was that if such a narrative took hold among voters opposed to the BJP, they could consolidate behind TMC instead, as by and large, across Bengal, TMC was seen as the more potent challenger to the BJP.

Especially in Muslim-majority districts like Malda and Murshidabad, fears of a splitting of the Muslim vote helping the BJP led to a consolidation for the TMC. This further reduced the Left-Congress-ISF alliance’s seat prospects.

It is a combination of these and myriad other factors that has reduced the once-mighty Left and Congress to almost nothing in West Bengal. And as far as the Left’s role is concerned in Bengal’s Vidhan Sabha, they were ousted from power in 2011, and have now been ousted from the opposition in 2021.

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Rajasthan by-polls: BJP wins Rajsamand assembly seat- Congress leads in Sahada and Sujangarh

Rajasthan polls

According to Election Commission figures, Deepti Maheshwari of BJP has won the bypolls to the Rajsamand assembly seat, while the Indian National Congress is leading in the by-elections to the Sahada and Sujangarh constituencies in Rajasthan. Over 60.37 percent voters had exercised their franchise in the April 17 by-elections to the Rajsamand, Sujangarh and Sahada assembly seats.

Maheshwari defeated Tansukh Bohara from the Congress by 5,310 votes, according to the commission. It said that in the Sahada and the Sujangarh seats, Congress candidates Gayatri Devi and Manoj Kumar are leading by 19,985 and 16,104 votes.

The ECI said that Sitaram Nayak of the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party and Ratanlal Jat of the BJP are in second and third position, respectively, in Sahada.
The figure stated that Kumar is leading over his nearest rival and BJP candidate Khemaram in Sujangarh.

In total, 60.37 percent voters had exercised their franchise in the by-elections held on April 17 for the Rajsamand, Sujangarh and Sahada assembly seats of the state.

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Play of Congress vs BJP in Assam- picture of the assembly constituencies tell seat share to vote share metric has helped BJP

bjp vs congress

In Assam election, as many as 264 candidates from different political parties including Independent candidates will contest in the first phase of polling.

As per data in the State Election Commission, there are a total of 81,09,815 registered voters in the first-phase of polls. Altogether 946 candidates are in the fray for the three-phased election to the 126-member Assam Legislative Assembly. The vote counting will be held on May 2.

The Congress, which ruled the state for 15 years from 2001 to 2016, has changed its electoral tactics and stitched together an alliance to leverage the consolidation of a previously fragmented anti-BJP vote base to recapture power in the state.

BJP used alliances to strengthen its political position and became a dominant player in the state. The party contested 13 out of the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, and won seven of them. While the Congress was seen as the biggest loser due to the BJP’s rise, & its seat tally came down from seven in the 2009 elections to just three. Congress was not the only party that lost ground due to the BJP’s rise. The Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) suffered a massive fall in its vote share and failed to open its account in the state. The All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) actually recorded its best performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha, winning the same number of seats as the Congress, despite a smaller vote share.

An Assembly Consituency (AC)-wise disaggregation of the 2014 Lok Sabha results show that the BJP crossed the majority mark in the state on its own. After that, it did not take the risk of going it alone in the 2016 assembly elections, even though the Congress was facing strong anti-incumbency after having been in power for 15 years. The BJP formed a tripartite alliance, including the AGP and the Bodoloand People’s Front (BPF), in which the BJP kept 71% of the ACs for itself. This strategy paid off, and the BJP ended up with a seat share of 47.6% despite getting just 29.5% of the total votes polled. While the BJP’s alliance partners added 26 more ACs to the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) tally, giving the NDA a two-thirds majority, they could not match the BJP’s performance. The Congress, which contested the polls on its own, could win only 20.6% of the ACs despite having a greater vote share than the BJP. A comparison of strike rates, which is the “seats won as percentage of seats contested”, and seat share to vote share ratio, a useful metric of a party’s ability to convert popular support into seats, of key parties, underlines the success of the BJP’s electoral tactics in Assam.

As per the list of candidates announced by INC until March 18, Congress is contesting 95 out of the 126 ACs in Assam. The AIUDF is expected to contest 21 seats, while the BPF has declared a list of eight candidates so far. The Congress’s two regional allies have geographically concentrated support bases in the state. In 2014, when the AIUDF recorded one of its best-ever performances in the state, 94% of its votes were concentrated in the Barak Valley, Central Assam, and Lower Assam subregions, which accounted for 65% of the total votes polled in the state and 61% of ACs (77 of 126). The BPF, when it contested on its own in 2011, managed just 6.1% of the total votes in the state, which was mostly concentrated in the Lower Assam and North Assam subregions. Even if one were to add the AIUDF’s vote to the Congress in the 2014, 2016, and 2019 elections, its seat share will not increase significantly. The Congress’s seat distribution so far, though, has been in line with the performance of its alliance partners in the 2016 assembly election, with each partner contesting seats where their strike rate was the best. However, it is Congress that will have to deal with the BJP and the AGP. The strike rate of the BJP and the AGP was better in seats the Congress is contesting than in those where the AIUDF is.

Also Read: Assam election: Will ask for your vote, then you need to prove your citizenship

Thnderbolt of BJP in Assam- Himanta Biswa Sarma

As BJP’s face in the northeast, Himanta Biswa Sarma has an astute political instinct that he has used to his advantage to stay ahead in the game. Firefighting is his forte. After all, he did convince a sitting legislator in the Assam assembly (Shiladitya Dev) not to contest as an Independent against the party’s official candidate, after being denied ticket, a move that could have played heavily against BJP, had Dev gone through with his plans.

Sarma, who is 52-year-old, has been a key figure in Assam politics for two decades now. He quit Tarun Gogoi’s Congress government in 2015 to join the BJP, and has had a meteoric rise in the saffron party and his influence is not restricted to Assam but can be seen across the region.

Himanta Biswa Sarma, a year before the election, in 2015, switched sides to the BJP. His political acumen and oratorical skills played a key role in BJP winning 60 of the total 126 seats in 2016 and forming the party’s first government in Assam with alliance partners Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF). Despite being new to the party, Sarma was given four crucial departments, health, education, finance, and public works, in the Sarbananda Sonowal cabinet.

Sarma was also appointed as the convener of North East Demoratic Alliance (NEDA), a BJP-led front of anti-Congress parties in the northeast. As the convenor,  he shared a close rapport with senior politicians in all seven states of the region.

After Assam, BJP won Manipur in the 2017 state elections, despite having 21 seats- seven less than Congress in the 60 member assembly. Sarma’s role was crucial in this victory as well.

Over the past 5 years, Himanta Biswa Sarma is a known face across the country-a rarity for politicians from the northeast.  Using his position in the Assam cabinet and in NEDA, he has made his mark beyond the region and is consulted by the BJP leadership for any issue concerning Assam and the region and, more often than not, his suggestions are accepted.

H B Sarma has been representing the Jalukbari seat continuously since 2001 and this time too the party gave him a ticket from the seat. Even though he had made his intentions of not contesting the 2021 state election, the party announced his candidature along with the names of candidates for the first phase that goes to the polls on March 27. Sarma’s constituency Jalukbari, goes into polls only in the third phase on April 6.

The elections in Assam will be held in three phases and it will begin on March 27, with the vote counting and declaration of results scheduled on May 02.

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Assam election: BJP minister in Assam switched side to Congress on being denied ticket in election

Sum Ronghang

When West Bengal is witnessing a slew of defections from the ruling party TMC, the ruling party in Assam, BJP is facing a similar situation, yet not to that extent.

Sum Ronghang, a BJP minister has switched formally to Congress on Sunday, on being denied ticket in the upcoming Assam assembly election.

He joined the Congress in the presence of party general secretary Jitendra Singh and party’s state unit chief Ripun Bora. Mr Ronghang is the Minister of hill area development and mines and minerals.

The Congress is likely to field him from Diphu constituency, party sources added.

Mr Ronghang said, “I did not like the way I was denied the ticket. I performed my duties with full dedication. I did not get the ticket due to conspiracy of certain individuals.”

He was one among the 11 BJP MLAs who have been dropped this time.

As per the recently conducted ABP-C-Voter survey, BJP-led alliance is likely to retain power in the state. Out of the state’s 126 seats, the opinion poll predicted 68-76 seats and 42 per cent vote share for the BJP, and 43-51 seats and 31 percent vote share for Congress-led alliance. The others may get 5-10 seats in the state.

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Dissenters in INC under G-23 planning for a series of meetings like Jammu

Jammu_Congress_Meet_

Four states and a Union Territory are set to face Assembly elections in the months of March and April. In this electoral context, the party-leadership in INC is treading cautiously, even as the group of dissenters in Congress-G23 is seeking to fan out in Haryana, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh in the coming weeks. The major flashpoints between the INC and G-23 have been the praise of GN Azad heaped for Modi, and the criticism of Anand Sharma for the political tie-up of the Left-Congress combine with the newly formed Indian Secular front, for the election battle in West Bengal.

Anand Sharma, a former union minister and a leader of the G-23 group of dissenters, which had written to Congress president Sonia Gandhi demanding organizational overhaul, said that the issue of “alliance” with a radical party like the ISF should have been discussed and approved by the Congress Working Committee (CWC).

The meetings in Punjab and Haryana can become particularly problematic for INC, given that these states are the birth-grounds for the ongoing protests by the farmers against the central farm-laws, which has already become almost a political catastrophe for the BJP. G-23 meetings in these states can possibly take away the political mileage stripped from BJP, away from INC.

A series of meetings are being organized by the group of 23 (G23) dissenters in the Congress, in other states on the lines of the one they held in Jammu recently, as the group is planning to raise the pitch against the high command.

Sources who are in knowledge of the deveopment adding that Hooda’s event may spell trouble for the party as he enjoys mass support in Haryana, said, “These meetings will be held before the party’s presidential election, which is scheduled by May-end. Anand Sharma has been asked to arrange one meeting in Himachal Pradesh, Bhupinder Singh Hooda in Kurukshetra and Manish Tewari in Ropar or Anandpur Sahib.”

INC leadership is wary of taking any tough action against the rebels assembled under the G-23 umbrella, ahead of crucial elections in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry.

One of the party leaders stated, “The build-up by these leaders will fizzle out soon. Taking any disciplinary action at this moment (ahead of Assembly elections) will send a wrong signal to people and draw unnecessary attention. If the party does well in the Assembly election under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, it will automatically subdue the momentum these leaders are trying to build up before the presidential election.”

The dissenters, at the G-23’s Jammu meeting had said that the Congress was getting weaker and that they were working to strengthen it.

High command of INC has refrained from making any harsh comments and instead urged them to work for strengthening the Congress ahead of the Assembly elections. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi, on being asked about Sharma’s criticism attacked the BJP, alleging that it was creating “false propaganda” by dubbing its political opponents as communal and claiming itself to be secular.

The dissenters’ group-G23 has already weakened as some members are unhappy over a few of them articulating their misgivings in public.