New Delhi: Daggers are out in the Delhi Congress over the candidature of Kanhaiya Kumar and Udit Raj, with several senior party leaders, including Sandeep Dikshit and former MLAs, opposing the decision to field “outsiders” at party meetings, ThePrint has learnt.
The Congress is contesting three of Delhi’s seven Lok Sabha seats and its INDIA ally the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) the remaining four. While the party has fielded veteran Congress leader J.P. Agarwal from Chandni Chowk, it has given tickets to former BJP MP Udit Raj and Kanhaiya Kumar from North West Delhi and North East Delhi seats respectively.
Resentment among party workers was on display during a press conference organised Monday to introduce the three candidates at Delhi Congress headquarters.
Angry party workers from North West Delhi and North East Delhi Lok Sabha seats shouted slogans like ‘Baahari candidate nahi chalega’, as Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely introduced the candidates. With workers trying to barge into the hall where the press conference was underway, the doors had to be locked from inside for over 30 minutes.
The candidates spoke about their plans for the constituency and also targeted the Narendra Modi government for its failure even as angry protesters shouted slogans against the two “outsiders”, especially former MP Udit Raj.
J.P. Agarwal and Udit Raj spoke about the work done by them in their respective constituencies during their previous tenures, while Kanhaiya trained his guns at Modi on the issues of unemployment, inflation, etc.
“No one from us is contesting on just one seat; we are contesting on all 543 seats given the present political and economic condition in the country. Inflation is impacting people’s lives; unemployment in the country is at its peak and with each passing day the gulf between the rich and the poor is widening…One one hand, a few people have become the richest people in the world, while others are finding it difficult to buy even essential items,” said Kumar, the former JNUSU president, amidst protest by workers.
When contacted, Congress leader Deepak Babaria, in-charge of poll preparations in Delhi, said, “Those protesting were not Congress workers. They could be supporters of a Congress leader, who joined the BJP four years back. He rejoined the Congress later on. He has been inactive for a long time, but has been asking for a ticket.” He didn’t name the leader.
Delhi Congress chief Lovely was quick to dismiss the protest by party workers as the norm during elections. “There is a fight to get the ticket from the party; this just shows that things are in Congress’s favour,” he said. “The party will take a serious view if this continues after the nominations are filed,” Lovely added.
Many in the party were upset with the Congress high command’s decision to contest elections in alliance with the AAP and the decision to field two “outsiders” (Raj and Kumar), especially Udit Raj, just made matters worse, said four senior Congress leaders.
“First, we are contesting on just three seats in alliance with AAP. Now, the party has given a ticket to Udit Raj, who is an outsider. How does the party expect us to seek public support for it?” asked Rajesh Rathore, a Congress block president from Mangolpuri, who along with other party workers shouted slogans against Udit Raj.
Rajan Sharma, a worker from North East Delhi who came to the press conference with a group of cadres, asked, “Why couldn’t the Congress give a ticket to a local leader?”
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‘Heated exchange between Kanhaiya, Dikshit ’
Last week, Babaria held two meetings with former MLAs, councillors and district unit leaders to chalk out campaign plans in North West Delhi and North East Delhi seats.
In North East Delhi, Kanhaiya Kumar has been pitted against BJP’s two-time MP and Poorvanchal face Manoj Tiwari.
It is learnt that former Congress MP Sandeep Dikshit, former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit’s son, said during the meeting that the decision to field Kanhaiya would adversely impact the party’s performance in other seats. A senior Congress leader, who was at the meeting, told ThePrint, “There was a heated exchange between Kanhaiya and Dikshit.”
When contacted, Dikshit refused to comment.
Asked about growing resentment among cadres against the two candidates and stiff opposition from Dikshit, former MLAs and councillors, Babaria told ThePrint, “There are a lot of leaders in the party. Every individual thinks he/she is the best and deserves a ticket. We have given the tickets to the best candidates.”
In North West Delhi, senior party leaders admit, the situation is much more intense with several members in the local unit refusing to campaign for Udit Raj.
In a meeting with Babaria Sunday, former MLAs and councillors had a heated exchange with him. “Several MLAs and councillors told him (Babaria) that he didn’t properly brief the party high command about the ground reality. Local workers are upset that the party always fields an outsider. The local unit has been working so hard for years now. Why will we go and seek votes for Udit Raj?” asked a former Congress MLA.
“Workers are miffed with Raj due to his comments on Brahmins, Jats and other communities etc,” added a senior Congress leader, who did not wish to be named.
Hitting back at the local unit leaders opposing his candidature, Raj told ThePrint, “They are spreading lies about me. I have never said anything against Brahmins or Jat communities. Those opposing me are from the SC community. No Brahmin or Jat is opposing me.
“In fact, I supported wrestlers who were protesting at Jantar Mantar and also the farmers. But yes, I have only questioned why the President of India was not invited to the consecration of Ram temple or for the inauguration of the new Parliament building.”
Two senior leaders with Delhi Congress confirmed that former MLAs, councillors and local unit leaders registered their protests in the meetings.
Asked about the protest against him, Udit Raj said, “These people don’t matter. They are the ones who got tickets from the party in different elections but lost. The Congress will benefit and will be back in the race if action is taken against such people.”
Divided over alliance with AAP
For the first time, the Congress, which has been out of power in the Delhi Assembly since 2013, is contesting the Lok Sabha polls here as part of an alliance.
On Sunday, Modi mocked the Congress at a rally in Rajasthan’s Banswara for not contesting the New Delhi seat. “This is the first time in post Independence history that the royal family of the Congress party, which lives in Delhi, is not going to vote for itself…,” he remarked.
Many Delhi Congress leaders, especially former MLAs, said they were upset over the decision to ally with the AAP and fear that this would ruin their prospects in the assembly elections, which will be held in February next year.
“Right now our workers will campaign for AAP candidates. How will we go to the same voters and list the failures of AAP during the assembly elections? For nearly a decade, our workers have worked so hard to rebuild our base. This will have an adverse impact on our prospects in assembly elections,” said a former MLA.
In an interview toThePrint, Lovely said that the “party high command will decide” when asked about the impact of the alliance with AAP on the party’s prospects in the Delhi assembly elections next year.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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