AICC secy blames Sonia for Delhi wipeout, Amarinder seeks apology
NEW DELHI: The blame game in the Congress over the Delhi poll debacle has escalated and reached the top after a young AICC secretary reportedly put the onus of the defeat on party chief Sonia Gandhi.
Media reports quoted AICC secretary in-charge of Punjab Harish Chaudhary, considered close to Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, as having told a news conference in Jalandhar that the onus of the defeat was only on the “captain of the team” in an apparent reference to Sonia.
“Rahul has been only assisting the Congress president while all decisions are made by her,” he had said on Thursday.
When contacted by HT, Chaudhary said he had been “misquoted”. “I said that Sonia Gandhi is our leader and we fought the elections under her leadership.”
But his remarks triggered a storm in the party with former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh questioning his locus standi on the matter.
“Mr Chaudhary will do us a favour by keeping his mouth shut rather than blaming the Congress president for the defeat,” he said, adding, “It is strange that a small time party office bearer...has the audacity to pronounce Ms Gandhi guilty of Delhi electoral failure.”
Seeking an unconditional apology from Chaudhary, Amarinder said such elements must be “firmly disciplined.”
The disquiet in the party over its decimation in Delhi is palpable. On Thursday, ex-CM Sheila Dikshit blamed party’s chief ministerial candidate Ajay Maken for the defeat, prompting Sonia to intervene asking the leaders not to squabble in public. In an AICC meet likely to be held on March-April in Bengaluru, the party might take stock of its recent losses.