Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Adding weight to the speculation that the Congress is seriously exploring the possibility of going alone in Maharashtra,senior party leader Prithviraj Chavan on Friday questioned the very existence of the NCP.
At the Idea Exchange interaction with the staff of The Indian Express,the senior Congress leader and Union Minister said: People are questioning the logic of existence of the NCP. In 1999,it was created on two main themes. One was the question about the origin of Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi and her right to be a major player in Indian politics and,secondly,the personal ambition of Mr Sharad Pawar. If you look at both these issues today,people are asking questions. Do these issues still remain? Do reasons for the existence of the NCP still remain? Thats a big question the NCP will have to answer effectively.
He endorsed his ministerial colleague Vilasrao Deshmukhs call of going alone in the Assembly elections later this year. If you dont get absolute majority,you can join hands again because we are secular parties. Where there is possibility of division of secular votes,there we have worries. But areas where the Shiv Sena and the BJP virtually have no existence like in Western Maharashtra,it is this Congress (Indian National Congress) or that Congress (NCP),let the people decide which Congress is real Congress or who is better, said Chavan. The final decision,he said,would be a carefully considered one by the high command.
