Congress prez elections "fake, fabricated, Mughal-style coronation", says BJP's Shehzad Poonawalla
Sep 19, 2022
New Delhi [India], September 19 : Taking a potshot at Congress over its upcoming presidential election, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shehzad Poonawalla on Monday said that the entire process is a "Mughal-style coronation" and is "fake and fabricated".
This comes after various state units of the party including Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Bihar and Tamil Nadu demanded that Rahul Gandhi, who was earlier the party president before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and later stepped down, should reclaim his previous position (party chief) in the party. Sonia Gandhi has been the interim president of Congress since Rahul backed off.
Speaking to ANI, Poonawalla said, "Many of the Congress leaders have said that the party's election is a sham. It is not free and fair, but fake and fabricated. 11It is a Mughal-style coronation."
Alleging that there is "no internal democracy" in Congress, the BJP leader said that the party workers have "accepted" that there can be "no party president other than a Gandhi family member".
"It is now clear that there is no internal democracy in Congress, and neither is there any responsibility. A family is chosen over performance. The party is passing resolutions to make the one its president who has lost 40 out of 50 elections. It is an acceptance by the party that there can be no party president other than a Gandhi family member. What's the need for the drama of elections, coronation should be done straight away," he said.
Poonawalla also took a jibe at senior party leader P Chidambaram's remark in which he stated that whoever becomes the President of Congress, Rahul Gandhi's place in the party "will always remain pre-eminent", and said that Rahul Gandhi will be like a "remote control" for the party president.
"Chidambaram has to say that if someone other than Rahul Gandhi becomes the party president. he will only be for name sake. Just like Manmohan Singh's remote control as a prime minister was in the hands of Sonia Gandhi, the remote control of the party president will be in the hands of Rahul Gandhi," he said.
It is worth noting that the nominations for the Congress President's election will start from September 24. In elections, only 'nominated' voters cast their votes on behalf of the PCC office bearers and the party high command. Many party leaders believe that for more than two decades, the leadership of the party is in the hands of the Gandhi family, so the loyalty of voters is natural in them. But, many leaders like Anand Sharma, Shashi Tharoor, and Manish Tewari in the party have exposed many flaws in the entire election process and questioned the party.
Congress said that the election for its president will be held on October 17, and its result will be declared on October 19.
