Abhishek Singhvi breaks silence on '23 Congress dissenters'; says 'must follow party Prez'

Opening up on the discord in the Congress after the stormy CWC meet, senior Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi, on Sunday said that the party must move forward, letting the bygones go. Addressing a press conference, Singhvi - whose peer Kapil Sibal was one of the 23 signatories who sought 'structural changes' - said that once the president let dissent go, it must be followed. Several Congress leaders have sought strict action against the dissenters but interim-chief Sonia Gandhi has said 'I am hurt, but let us move forward'.

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Singhvi: 'Let bygones go'

"I am not speaking about individuals, individual reports, individual press conferences. We had a marathon discussion on diverse issues for 7 hours and the President said the discussion was very open. We talked like family and we have to move together for the future letting the bygones go. Once the president said it should be followed with letter and spirit," said Singhvi.

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Ghulam Nabi Azad: 'Will remain in Opposition'

Previously on Friday, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad predicted that Congress would continue to sit in the Opposition for the next 50 years if elections within the party are not conducted. Slamming those for opposing elections, Rajya Sabha member said, “Those office-bearers or state unit presidents or block district presidents who attack our proposal know that they will be nowhere when elections happen. Whoever is genuinely invested in the Congress will welcome the letter". Similarly, most signatories have maintained that 'wanting internal elections was not undemocratic'.

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Congress squashes dissent

Quashing all internal dissent, Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Monday, retained Sonia Gandhi as party chief till elections are called for in the next AICC meeting. Moreover, it passed a resolution strengthening the Gandhis' leadership and not allowing anyone to undermine the party or the Gandhis (Rahul and Sonia). When asked if action will be taken on the 23 dissenters, CWC said that Sonia Gandhi was hurt, but did not hold any grudges against them.

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The 23 senior leaders sought 'structural changes', internal election to the CWC even at state levels, the formation of an Independent Election Authority, and institutional leadership mechanism, full-time leadership at the helm at the party.  The 23 signatories include Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Kapil Sibal, Manish Tewari, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Rajender Kaur Bhattal, M. Veerappa Moily, Prithviraj Chavan, P.J. Kurian, Ajay Singh, Renuka Chaudhary, and Milind Deora -  belonging from the Congress' 'old guard ' and the 'young guard' (i.e Rahul Gandhi supporters). Post CWC meet, Congress announced its parliamentary panel excluding most signatories.