Azad hints at possible tie-up with BJP, blames Rahul Gandhi for his Congress exit
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New Delhi: Ghulam Nabi Azad, the veteran politician who cut off his links with the grand old party, Congress, to form his own party, said about his possible ties up with the BJP adding that no one is untouchable in politics today.
Speaking to the media after releasing his autobiography “Azaad”, he blamed Rahul Gandhi for his exit from the Congress, with a strong decision not to return to the party.
Azad, who had been associated with the Congress for five decades, took a dig at some in the Congress leadership, stating that he was "2,000 per cent more Congressi than those who run politics on Twitter" and that he was "24-carat Congress by conviction, while they are not even 18 carat."
When asked if he would like to rejoin the party, Azad said that the party did not want people like him and instead favoured those who were fast on Twitter and claimed that the party would win 500 seats after the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
When questioned if Sonia Gandhi had called him to return to the Congress fold, he replied that had it been in Sonia Gandhi's hands, they would not have been there today and that Sonia Gandhi cannot decide.
It was mentioned that Congress leaders Anand Sharma and Janardhan Dwivedi were present at the event, along with many Opposition MPs and Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
Azad remarked that had Rahul Gandhi not opposed the Ordinance introduced by the UPA government in 2013, he would not have been disqualified as an MP. Azad stated that the Ordinance was introduced because they anticipated that other parties would come to power and use it against them.
He added that the cabinet at that time was weak and should have passed a law instead of an Ordinance. Additionally, Azad expressed that the cabinet should have persisted in enacting the law, despite Rahul Gandhi's dismissal of it as nonsense and tearing it.
Slamming Azad for his blatant attack on the party and Rahul Gandhi, the Congress said that he is now following the same ideology that he had opposed for fifty years.
Congress leader Pawan Khera expressed concerns about the party's trust in its workers, citing the example of Azad, whose long history of party loyalty was shattered. He questioned if this could happen to more experienced workers, then how could the lesser experienced ones be trusted not to betray the party.
They referred to Azad's recent statements, where he had claimed to be "Azaad" (free) but had actually become "Ghulam" (slave).
Congress communication department head Jairam Ramesh commented that both Ghulam Nabi Azad and Jyotiraditya Scindia had been significant beneficiaries of the Congress system and leadership, but now, they are revealing their true character, which they had kept hidden for so long.
Jyotiraditya Scindia also criticized Congress, stating that the party is now devoid of any ideology. He further stated that the only ideology that Congress is left with is of a traitor, an ideology that works against the country.
