Former Punjab & Haryana AICC general secretary Shakeel Ahmad quits Congress

Former AICC general secretary and senior party leader Shakeel Ahmad on Tuesday tendered his resignation from primary membership of the Congress. Ahmad had raging differences with the Congress leadership in Bihar and had stayed away from the state Assembly poll campaigning as well.

Ahmad served as a powerful AICC general secretary in charge of Punjab and Haryana when the Congress was in power in both states under Chief Ministers Capt Amarinder Singh and Bhupinder Singh Hooda, respectively.

He hails from a dedicated Congress family in Bihar. His grandfather Ahmad Gafoor was elected MLA in 1937. After his grandfather’s demise, Ahmad’s father Shakoor Ahmad became MLA five times from 1952 to 1977.

“Following my father’s death in 1981, I became MLA and MP on five occasions while representing the Congress. I had on April 16, 2023, informed the party that I would not be contesting any elections in the future. I also announced that all my three sons were based in Canada and had no interest in joining politics. I had however hoped to stay in the Congress...But I would like to emphasise that my differences are with certain individuals within the party even though my belief in the Congress ideology and principles remains steadfast,” Ahmad wrote in a letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, resigning from primary membership of the party.