Former Jammu and Kashmir deputy CM among 50 Congress leaders quit party to back Ghulam Nabi Azad
The recent mass resignation comes close on the heels of the resignations of a dozen prominent Congress leaders, including former ministers and legislators, besides hundreds of Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI) members, municipal corporators and district and block level leaders.
FollowIn another big blow for the Indian National Congress (INC), more than 50 senior leaders of the party, including former Jammu and Kashmir deputy chief minister Tara Chand, on Tuesday resigned from the party in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad.
According to reports, they submitted a joint resignation letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
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Ghulam Nabi Azad, 73, a former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, had quit the Congress last week, ending his five-decade association with the INC. In his resignation letter to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, Azad said that the party has been "comprehensively destroyed", lashing out at Rahul Gandhi for "demolishing" its entire consultative mechanism.
The former Jammu and Kashmir CM said he will soon launch a national-level party from Jammu and Kashmir.
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Chand and several others, including former ministers Abdul Majid Wani, Manohar Lal Sharma, Gharu Ram and former MLA Balwan Singh, announced their resignations from the party, including its primary membership, at a press conference.
"We have submitted a joint resignation letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi in support of Azad," PTI quoted Singh as saying.
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The recent mass resignation comes close on the heels of the resignations of a dozen prominent Congress leaders, including former ministers and legislators, besides hundreds of Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI) members, municipal corporators and district and block level leaders.
Earlier on Friday, five Congress leaders in Jammu and Kashmir resigned from the party hours after Ghulam Nabi Azad tendered his resignation. All the leaders were close to the Congress veteran.
A joint letter in this regard was issued by the leaders, including GM Saroori, Haji Abdul Rashid, Mohd Amin Bhat, Gulzar Ahmad Wani and Choudhari Mohd Akram. Senior Congress leader and former cabinet minister RS Chib also resigned from the party's primary membership.
