Virbhadra Singh reluctant to enter poll arena this time?
RIFT WIDENS CM reportedly told Cong MLAs it was difficult for him to lead party's campaign due to lack of support from certain factions of the party; detractors call it pressure tactics
SHIMLA:Rift between chief minister Virbhadra Singh and state party chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu widened on Friday with the former seemingly expressing his reluctance to contest upcoming assembly elections, claiming lack of ‘expected’ support from the organisation.
Even as opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) kept up its diatribe against chief minister Virbhadra Singh during the four-day monsoon session that concluded on Friday, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) met twice to discuss the poll strategy.
During the meeting, chief minister Virbhadra Singh reportedly told the Congress legislators that it was difficult for him to lead the party's campaign under the “present circumstances”, even as his loyalists backed him.
Virbhadra Singh was seemingly unhappy with the behav- iour of some Congress legislators, especially his detractors during the four-day monsoon session. The BJP had scaled up its attack on Virbhadra Singh putting his government in the dock over the law and order situation in the state. Barring a few ministers such as health minister Kaul Singh Thakur and parliamentary affairs minister Mukesh Agnihotri, he did not get much support from his cabinet colleagues.
Factionalism became more intense after Virbhadra sought the removal of state party chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
Bickering in the party was again visible when AICC general secretary in-charge for party affairs in Himachal, Shushil Kumar Shinde, and AICC secretary Ranjeet Ranjan toured the state to forge unity among the two warring leaders—Virbhadra Singh and Sukhu.
Much toch a grin of the touring leaders both leaders did not shy away from undermining each other during party meetings in different district headquarters.
On Friday, Virbhadra Singh gave clear cut signals to the party that his son youth Congress president Vikramaditya Singh would contest elections but remained nonchalant about his future. The CM candidly told the party that he would campaign for the party but would tour the constituency as per demand.
The group of legislators hostile to him also sees Virbhadra Singh’s reluctance to contest the poll as a tactic to build up pressure on the high command to change the state party chief. Virbhadra Singh’s supporters had constantly insisted the party high command to give him freehand in the elections. His supporters want that the party high command clear its stance on him before the elections. The meeting of Congress Legislature Party has been reconvened again.
CM DESCRIBES THE MEETING AS A ROUTINE AFFAIR
“Contesting elections or not its just a secondary issue for me. The Congress has remained in power for most of the time in the state and contributed immensely towards the development of the state. I am hopeful that people will again repose faith in the Congress government,” Virbhadra told reporters outside the Vidhan Sabha.