‘Harish Rawat is still Congress face in state’

DEHRADUN: The Uttarakhand Congress wants to continue with Harish Rawat as the party’s face for the 2017 assembly elections, All India Congress Committee state in-charge Ambika Soni said.

Speaking to Hindustan Times on Wednesday, Soni denied the party is even considering a change of guard or, saying that Rawat was chief minister and will remain leader of the party in the coming days as well.

“I am an AICC general secretary and the state in-charge but am not aware of such talks (of replacing Rawat) taking place at any level in the organisation. The whole party is behind him and every Congressman will remain with Hari sh Rawat in the 2017 elections,” Ambika Soni said.

“Proof of Rawat’s leadership (qualities) lies in the fact that Congress won all the four state assembly by-elections after he assumed power in 2014, followed by a massive victory for the party in the urban and local body elections,” she said.

She denounced Harish Raw at’ s predecessor and former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna, accusing him of rebelling against the party despite “enjoying all comforts of governance”.

Soni also questioned why the BJP did not to dissolve the state assembly when the President’s rule was imposed.

“Why have they not dissolved the state assembly if BJP and its central government think that Harish Rawat lost the people’s confidence? The BJP wants a back door entry with the help of the Union government” she said.