The Congress suffered a major jolt in Rajasthan Tuesday with senior party leader Bhanwar Lal Sharma stepping down from all party posts and making corruption charges against the party in ticket distribution. Sharma, a legislator from Sardarshahr in Churu, has been seeking a ticket for his son Anil Sharma and after he learnt that the ticket could be given to someone else, he rebelled. “I am not upset because my son might not be given a ticket for the Lok Sabha elections but because there is rampant corruption in the party. A senior leader has received money for selling the ticket to a candidate who is an outsider. If Ashok Gehlot’s son can seek a ticket, why can’t my son? My son is more experienced and served as the chairman of the local municipality. He has been elected the block Congress president for the third time,” Sharma said. Sharma also trained his gun on Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, alleging that he was inaccessible and did not listen to party members. “No one can meet Rahul Gandhi. He does not listen to the party workers and is only surrounded by a couple of his stooges,” Sharma alleged. Sharma resigned from the AICC, PCC and the PCC executive committee and threatened to quit the party. “If the party does not stop their corrupt ways, I will resign from the party and contest for the assembly seat as an Independent. But the party must remember that with me, five to seven other legislators will also go,” Sharma said. He said top party leaders, other than Rahul , was in touch with him and were discussing the issue. Sharma is a six-time MLA and has been a minister in the Bhairon Singh Shekhawat government.
