From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Congress was shell-shocked at Ghulam Nabi Azad (73), one of the tallest leader of the party who had been a union minister for many years, chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir and lastly leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, announcing his resignation from the party in the quitting letter to the media.
Its general secretary and chief spokesman Jairam Ramesh said: “It is most unfortunate and most regrattable that this happened when Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and the entire Congress organisation, across the country is engaged in confronting, combating and fighting the BJP on the issues of Mehangai (recession), berozgari (unemployment) and issues of polarisation.”
In a statement released at a Press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Jairam said Azad’s shock has come at a time when the party is preparing for the ‘Mehangai Par Hulla Bol’ rally at the Ramlila Maidan here on September 4 to be addressed by Rahul Gandhi, with 22 press conferences across the country on Monday, and the Bharat Jodo Yatra of 3,500 km led by Rahul from Kanyakumari on September 7.
“That is all we want to say for the moment,” he added while putting off for Saturday the scheduled press conference of Congress general secretary Ajay Maken on the liquor policy of Delhi government in view of this development.
