Ghulam Nabi Azad set to float new party in J&K, say close aides

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, August 26

Former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who resigned from the Congress party on Friday, is set to float his new party in Jammu and Kashmir, close aides of the leader and Congressmen have confirmed the development to The Tribune.

Soon after Azad resigned from all party posts, several senior leaders of the J&K Congress, including GM Saroori, RS Chib, Jugal Kishore Sharma, Haji Abdul Rashid, Mohd Amin Bhat, Gulzar Ahmad Wani and Choudhary Mohammad Akram who are also former MLAs, also tendered their resignation.

It has been learnt that a meeting of several leaders with Azad was held during the day in which it was decided that a new party would be floated in Jammu and Kashmir.

Close aide of Azad and former Congress Member Legislative Council (MLC) Naresh Gupta informed that the situation that has arisen was expected, as the Congress Party was not able to connect with the people of J&K.

“A new party will be floated by Ghulam Nabi Azad in coming days that will have many senior leaders of the Congress and also some of those who left the party to join other parties in J&K in recent past. We are in talks with many leaders, including District Development Council (DDC) members, Block Development Council (BDC) members and even panches and sarpanches who are ready to join us,” said Gupta.

There is speculation that many such leaders, who had left the Congress in recent times to join other parties, may also join Azad’s new party.

Another Congress leader said that Azad is a secular face who is accepted in both the regions of the UT. “The new party that will be floated by Azad will cater to the people of both regions of J&K as he is a secular man who is accepted in the entire UT,” said Gaurav Chopra, Municipal Corporation Councillor of the Congress.

Chopra said that the Congress did not do anything even as the BJP removed Article 370. “The Congress Party has failed on all fronts, be it criticising the BJP or recounting development the leaders of the party did when the party was in power,” said Chopra.

Former Cabinet Minister and Congress leader RS Chib, who also quit the party, stated in his resignation letter that “I feel that in the prevailing circumstances, the Congress Party has lost its momentum in contributing towards the future of my state. Keeping in view the turmoil that the state of J&K has witnessed over the past decades, people require a decisive leader like Ghulam Nabi Azad”.

He further stated that the Congress has not been able to play the role that is expected of it.

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