Sonia Gandhi approves Sunil Jakhar's removal from Congress posts, ex-PPCC chief to stay in party

Tribune News Service

New Delhi/Chandigarh, April 26

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday approved the removal of former Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar and former Union food minister KV Thomas from all party posts in view of complaints of “anti-party activities” against them.

Gandhi’s approval came on Tuesday evening after the Congress disciplinary committee, in meeting earlier, according to top sources, recommended suspending Jakhar for two years apart from removing him from party posts.

The Congress chief, however, was learnt not to have favoured harsh punishment and sufficed to approve removal of the two leaders from party positions.

“In view of the seniority of Sunil Jakhar and KV Thomas, it has been decided that the two will be removed from party positions and will not hold any at least in the near future. Harsh action has not been taken against them since they are both veteran leaders but some action was needed,” Tariq Anwar, member of the Congress disciplinary committee told The Tribune later.

Sonia also approved a three-year suspension for five Meghalaya MLAs for helping the BJP in the state.

Reacting to the day’s developments, Jakhar “wished the party good luck”.

He said, “The way in which the party leadership has handled my case they have belittled me and shown me in poor light. Such an attitude is not acceptable to me. I have already wished the party good luck. Moreover I do not hold any position in the party,” Jakhar said.

With Jakhar keeping the Congress guessing on his plans, his aides said the former Punjab Congress chief was very upset at the issuance of a show cause notice as the same had been done to insult him. Jakhar had not replied to the notice.

Instead of calling him to Delhi to sort things out, certain leaders preferred to undermine him, a Punjab Congress leader said.

The complaint against Jakhar pertained to his remarks on Punjab election eve that “he got the maximum 42 MLA votes in the race for Punjab chief minister-ship after Amarinder Singh was removed, Sukhjinder Randhawa got 16, Charanjit Singh Channi, the Congress’ pick for the post two votes, Navjot Sidhu six and Preneet Kaur 12”.

The remarks, the Congress believed, alienated the Hindu electorate.

After the Congress debacle in the state, Jakhar also went on to describe then CM Channi as a liability for the party in Punjab.

Thomas was show-caused for attending a CPM conference in Kerala despite Sonia Gandhi asking the state leaders not to do so.

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