- Friday, April 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
It’s less than two years to go for India’s next general election and the opposition Indian National Congress, which is facing one of the worst crises in its 130-year-plus life tenure, has seen another low as senior leader Anand Sharma stepped from a key panel for the upcoming election in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh.
The 69-year-old Sharma, who has served as a central minister and deputy leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha or the Upper House of the Indian Parliament, on Sunday (21) said he had no choice but to quit “due to continuous insults and exclusion”. He though said that he would remain as a committed member of the grand-old party.
In a series of tweets, Sharma said, “I have resigned with a heavy heart from the Chairmanship of the Steering Committee of the Congress for the Himachal Elections. Reiterating that I am a lifelong congressman and remain firm on my convictions.
I have resigned with a heavy heart from the Chairmanship of the Steering Committee of the Congress for the Himachal Elections. Reiterating that I am a lifelong congressman and remain firm on my convictions. 1/2
— Anand Sharma (@AnandSharmaINC) August 21, 2022
“Committed to Congress ideology that runs in my blood, let there be no doubts about this! However, given the continuing exclusion and insults, as a self-respecting person- I was left with no choice.”
Committed to Congress ideology that runs in my blood, let there be no doubts about this! However, given the continuing exclusion and insults, as a self-respecting person- I was left with no choice. 2/2
— Anand Sharma (@AnandSharmaINC) August 21, 2022
Sharma, who was born in Shimla in current-day Himachal Pradesh, said he sent a letter to the party’s interim president, Sonia Gandhi, after he was allegedly sidelined from the working of the Congress’s party unit in the Himalayan state.
Rajeev Shukla, who is in charge of the party’s state unit, did not comment on the matter while sources in the Congress said that they had no idea about the development, Indo-Asian News Service reported.
The Congress has seen internal trouble brewing over the last several months. After its former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh quit in Punjab citing similar humiliation, another senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad resigned as the party’s campaign committee in Jammu and Kashmir. Kapil Sibbal, another senior leader, quit the party in May while Manish Tewari, also a party veteran, has been found speaking against it on occasions.
Both Azad and Sharma are among the prominent leaders of the Congress’s G-23 group which has sought sweeping reforms in the party.
The Congress leadership had in April appointed a number of top party officials in Himachal, including the state party chief, leader of the Congress Legislative Party and the chairman of the campaign committee. Eight other committees were also formed, including a steering committee with Sharma at helm.
The IANS cited sources close to Sharma’s office that “multiplicity of committees and overlapping of functions required clarity for functional purposes”.
