Gujarat Congress in Crisis as Shankarsinh Vaghela Quits Party
Congress veteran Shankarsinh Vaghela has criticised his party for not doing enough to prepare for the Gujarat polls.
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- Senior party leader Shankarsinh Vaghela quit the Congress on his 77th birthday
- The Gujarat lawmaker said he would not join any other political party, including the BJP
- Vaghela had earlier alleged that the Congress “sacked him 24 hours ago”
- Congress’ Randeep Surjewala dismissed Vaghela’s claim as “baseless arguments”
- Vaghela lashed out at the Congress for being unprepared for the upcoming Gujarat assembly polls
- Gujarat Congress had warned Vaghela not to “play any politics” under the guise of his birthday celebrations
- The resignation comes amid reports that 11 Congress MLAs voted for NDA’s Presidential candidate Ramnath Kovind
Vaghela's Exit Could Affect Ahmed Patel's Re-Election to Rajya Sabha
Gujarat Congress stalwart Shankarsinh Vaghela's decision to quit the party may cast a shadow on the prospects of Sonia Gandhi's confidante Ahmed Patel's re-election to the Rajya sabha.
According to sources in the party, Vaghela has the support of around a dozen MLAs, and if they follow suit, it may put into jeopardy Patel's chances of securing a fourth Rajya Sabha term from his home state.
Congress has 57 MLAs in Gujarat and its candidate would require votes of 47 of them to get elected.
Patel's current term ends on 18 August. Though the party is yet to announce its candidate for the upcoming elections, it is seen as almost certain that it would be Patel.
Vaghela's Exit 'Unfortunate', Says Congress
The Gujarat Congress on Friday said it was “unfortunate” that senior leader Shankarsinh Vaghela was quitting the party.
“The Congress, in the last 20 years, gave many opportunities to Vaghela. He was made a Union minister, the state party chief, leader of opposition (in the Assembly). Party chief Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi had faith in him and that is why he was appointed to these posts,” Ashok Gehlot, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) in- charge for Gujarat, told reporters in New Delhi.
“I do not know why has he done this...Whether he has done it under pressure from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. What was the pressure?,” he wondered.
Gujarat Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki, however, sought to play down the impact Vaghela's exit would have on the party in the Assembly polls due later this year.
“I firmly believe his resignation will have not have any impact and the Congress will win with a two-thirds majority as the people of Gujarat are very smart,” he said.
BJP Says Vaghela Was 'Humiliated'
BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya on Friday said, “Vaghela has become Congress-mukt today. He was facing humiliation in that party. Now, we would have to see who else will be Congress-mukt.”
“The Congress appears to be directionless. It does not have any programme for the uplift (of the marginalised sections of the society) or vision for the progress of the country. They have lost states after states,” said Pandya.
Vaghela Not Expelled By Party: Congress
The Congress said it has not expelled or initiated any disciplinary action against Gujarat leader Shankersinh Vaghela who today quit the party.
Lashing out at Vaghela’s claim that he was sacked by the Congress, Randeep Surjewala, the party’s communication in-charge, said that “these are baseless arguments”.
'Not Going to Join BJP'
As he announced that he was quitting the Congress, veteran politician Shankarsinh Vaghela asserted that he would not be “joining any other political party”, including the BJP.
Addressing a massive gathering in Gandhinagar, he said:
Congress Sacked me 24 Hrs Ago: Vaghela
Vaghela said that the “Congress sacked him 24 hours ago”. However, he maintained that he was “not in a mood to retire from active politics”.
CNN News18 quoted him as saying:
Vaghela, who was a BJP member till 1996, asserted that he would not be joining the PM Narendra Modi-led party.
Vaghela, who is referred to as 'bapu' by his supporters, also praised the RSS, of which he was a member in the past, and said the outfit had taught him about public life.
Vaghela Addresses Massive Gathering
Vaghela Responds to Congress Core Committee's Warning
Responding to reports of Congress core committee warning him of action regarding his comments on the party, Vaghela said:
Don't Play Politics: Gujarat Congress tells Vaghela
Late on 20 July, the Gujarat Congress issued a warning to Vaghela, asking him not to "play any politics" under the guise of his 77th birthday celebrations with his supporters and legislators on Friday.
The Congress will not tolerate your public utterances anymore, Vaghela was reportedly warned.
Former Gujarat Congress president, Siddharth Patel, told reporters in Ahmedabad that on 24 June, he had called a meeting in Gandhinagar “where Vaghela spoke about the party in public, which he should not have”.
11 Congress MLAs May Have Voted For Kovind Amid Fissures Within the Party
As many as 11 Gujarat Congress legislators were learnt to have cast their votes in favour of NDA's presidential candidate Ram Nath Kovind on 20 July, instead of the Congress-led opposition presidential candidate Meira Kumar.
This was revealed during counting of votes for the presidential election when it was found that of 181 votes polled, Kovind secured 132 votes and Meira Kumar 49 votes.
“I voted for UPA nominee Meira Kumar. I don't know about cross-voting," he told reporters.
Congress Leader Shankarsinh Vaghela May Part With Party on His Birthday
Gujarat Congress veteran Shankarsinh Vaghela had announced on 18 July that he would hold a mega gathering of his supporters on his 77th birthday (21 July) to share his "feelings" and give a message.
“Sulking” for not having been given a free hand for the party's campaign for the Gujarat assembly elections due later this year, the former chief minister visited Delhi on Thursday for some “personal” work, regarding which he refused to divulge any details. He has previously slammed the Congress over the party’s "lack of homework" for the assembly polls.
The gathering, which is scheduled to be held near Gandhinagar Town Hall, is being seen as his attempt to display his political might ahead of the assembly polls.
However, Vaghela has maintained that it was not a "show of strength" against the Congress leadership.
Party Leaders Try to Placate Vaghela
As the sudden move by him shook the state Congress, several leaders, including former state party President Siddharth Patel and AICC spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil, met him and urged him not to announce his retirement at the event on Friday.
Speculations are also rife that Vaghela has made his mind to part with the Congress, if not retirement.
Vaghela had earlier said that all the 57 Congress MLAs along with two of NCP and one from JD(U) have been invited for the event in Gandhinagar on Friday.
However, the Congress has asked its party members and MLAs not to attend tomorrow's meeting. "We hope that no Congress MLAs or workers will attend the meeting," Siddarth Patel said.
On 24 June, while addressing a meeting of his supporters in Gandhinagar, Vaghela had said he would not follow the Congress leadership if it continued on its present suicidal path in Gujarat, where elections are due this year.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI and IANS)
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Published: 21 Jul 2017,11:53 AM IST