Sajjan Verma slams Manish Tewari for raising concerns over election process in Congress, calls him 'disloyal'

Congress Secretary Sajjan Singh Verma has slammed party leader Manish Tewari after the latter raised concerns over the election process in the party, and said that he is a "disloyal person" who "destroys his own party".

He also hit out at Tewari for "raising questions" over Sonia Gandhi at a time when she lost her mother, "instead of expressing condolences".

Verma's remarks came after Tewari, in a series of tweets on Wednesday raised issues regarding the election process in Congress days after the party announced the schedule for the election of party president.

"How can there be a fair and free election without a publicly available electoral roll? Essence of a fair and free process is names & addresses of electors must be published on @INCIndia website in a transparent manner," Tewari had tweeted.

Verma, while speaking to ANI on Wednesday, responded to his tweet and said, "Manish Tiwari benefitted from Congress his entire life. There is no problem in raising questions. But putting it out in the open on social media, that too, at a time when Sonia Gandhi lost her mother. Instead of expressing condolences, he is questioning her."

The Congress secretary said that Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, who are abroad presently, will decide the election process once they return to India.

"Congress, unlike BJP, is not a party made of missed calls. Manish Tiwari has been in Congress for a number of years, every worker works hard to make a candidate win. Manish Tiwari is a disloyal person who destroys his own party," he added.

Emphasising that the Congress workers want Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi to be the party president, the Congress leader said that they are "bound by the Nehru-Gandhi family".

"The election of the president will be held and a prudent person will become the party chief once again. We want Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi to become the president. We are bound by the Nehru Gandhi family. We want those to be the chief who contributed to the freedom struggle. Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi sacrificed their lives, so we want a chief from that family only," he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Tewari's remarks came after Karti Chidambaram's tweet that said, "Every election needs a well-defined and clear electoral college. The process of forming the electoral college must also be clear, well-defined and transparent. An ad hoc electoral college is no electoral college."

Tewari tweeted, "Why should someone have to go to every PCC office in the country to find out who the electors are? This does not happen in a club election also with great respect. In interests of fairness and transparency, I urge your good self to publish the entire list of electors on Congress website. How can someone consider running if he/she does not know who the electors are. If someone has to file his/her nomination and gets it proposed by 10 Congresspersons as is requirement CEA can reject it saying they are not valid electors."

Ghulam Nabi Azad who resigned from Congress last week has also raised concerns over the election process in the party.

In a hard-hitting five-page note to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, Azad, wrote, "The entire administrative election process is a farce and a sham. At no place anywhere in the country have elections been held at any level of the organisation. Handpicked lieutenants of the AICC have been coerced to sign on lists prepared by the coterie that runs the AICC sitting in 24, Akbar Road."

Hitting out at Rahul Gandhi, Azad wrote, "Since the 2019 elections the situation in the party has only worsened. After Rahul Gandhi stepped down in a 'huff' and not before insulting all the senior Party functionaries who have given their lives to the party in a meeting of the extended Working Committee, you took over as interim President. A position that you have continued to hold even today for the past three years."

Congress Working Committee (CWC) had on Sunday decided that the election for the Congress president post will be held on October 17, said sources. The counting of votes will be done on October 19.

(ANI)

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