PC, G-23 slam ruckus outside Sibal’s house
NEW DELHI: Scenes of hooliganism and vandalism at senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal’s house after he demanded an open dialogue in the party on the political situation in Punjab and Goa sparked a storm of criticism from senior party leaders on Thursday, with former Union finance minister P Chidambaram saying he felt helpless and hurt.
Leaders of the so-called G-23 grouping — who wrote to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi last year demanding organisational changes — also lashed out at protesters who on Wednesday evening damaged Sibal’s car, shouted slogans, showed placards, and later threw tomatoes inside his Delhi residence.
The out-of-hand demonstration -— ostensibly by Delhi Congress workers — came hours after Sibal, a former Union minister, demanded introspection and internal dialogue to address the turmoil in the party in Punjab and the exodus of senior leaders in Goa, where former CM Luizhinio Falerio joined the Trinamool Congress, and said that the party was functioning without transparency.
“I feel helpless when we cannot start meaningful conversations within party forums. I also feel hurt and helpless when I see pictures of Congress workers raising slogans outside the residence of a colleague and MP. The safe harbour to which one can withdraw seems to be silence,” said Chidambaram, who was not part of the G-23.
Top G-23 leaders Anand Sharma, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Shashi Tharoor, Vivek Tankha and Manish Tewari also attacked the protesters.
Azad described Sibal as a “loyal congressman fighting for the party both inside and outside the Parliament” and said, “any suggestion from any quarter should be welcomed instead of suppressing”.
He “strongly condemned” the incident and dubbed it as an “orchestrated hooliganism”.
The Congress formally refused to comment. Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president BV Srinivas denied charges that IYC activists were behind the protest. Some party functionaries suggested that people from Sibal’s earlier constituency Chandni Chowk came to protests. Srinivas was among a group of leaders who publicly criticised Sibal for his comments on Punjab and Goa.
But the hooliganism only helped amplify their concern, felt two G-23 leaders, that a section of the party was not ready for open discussion on pressing issues.
Anand Sharma tweeted, “Shocked and disgusted to hear the news of attack and hooliganism at Kapil Sibal’s house. This deplorable action brings disrepute to the party...” Manish Tewari, another former minister, described the violence as an effort to defend “command performance”, an apparent reference to the party high command.
Asserting that differences of opinion and perception are integral to a democracy, Sharma said: “Congress has a history of upholding freedom of expression... Intolerance and violence is alien to Congress values and culture.”
Tewari condemned the attack. “Those who masterminded assault must bear in mind that he fights for @Incindia both inside & outside courts of Law. You may find his views uncomfortable but that cannot be a license for violence,” he said.
Tharoor called the incident shameful. “As a democratic party we need to listen to what he has to say, disagree if you must but not in this way. Our priority is to strengthen ourselves to take on the BJP!”
“People may disagree with him. Even protest. But not damage his car. At least in my life I never encouraged or promoted hooliganism,” Tankha said.
Sibal’s comments were prompted by the infighting in the party in poll-bound Punjab, where Navjot Singh Sidhu abruptly quit as state unit chief on Tuesday, barely two months after taking charge, over apparent differences with new chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi.
Sibal questioned the party’s decision-making process and cautioned that they are G-23 but not “Ji huzoor 23”. “We don’t have a president. So, who’s taking the decisions? We all know and yet we don’t know. We want a CWC meeting for a dialogue to take place,” he said.
Late on Thursday, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala indicated that a CWC meeting will be convened soon. “Before leaving for Shimla, Congress president Sonia Gandhi had already indicated that a CWC meeting shall be called very soon. Accordingly, the CWC meeting shall be held in the coming days,” Surjewala told PTI.
The G-23 grouping faced criticism from Gandhi loyalists in the past as well. Chidambaram was never a part of the grouping, and his comments indicate the growing distance between the party’s high command and its senior leaders.