Congress President Kharge Expresses Anguish Over Party's Response to 'Purification' Ritual

At the meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Wednesday, party president Mallikarjun Kharge vented out a personal anguish. And he has done that rarely. He told those present that he was “hurt” that many of the CWC members did not openly come out in support of him on the ‘purification’ issue by condemning it. Kharge was referring to a ‘purification’ ritual organised in Uttarakhand’s Haldwani after his visit some days ago. The Congress had alleged that those who organised the ‘shuddhikaran havan’ were linked to the BJP and said it reflected a casteist mindset. The BJP, on the other hand, had distanced itself from the event. Kharge had raised the issue in Rajya Sabha as well. He said he had never asked anyone to protect him because he is a Dalit, but the ‘purification’ event made him feel humiliated. At the CWC meeting, Kharge broached the topic. He said he felt “hurt” that all the CWC members and especially those “good-looking people” who get space in the media did not speak about it. AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said the party did raise the issue and condemned it, but Kharge’s body language suggested, those present at the meeting said, he was far from convinced. Kharge did not take any names, and Congress leaders could only speculate who all he was referring to. In fact, the Congress president — again without taking names — pointed out that some leaders are prone to making comments and writing articles not in consonance with the party line. Briefing the media later on the deliberations in the CWC, Venugopal spoke about the ‘purification’ row, arguing that the incident was “unacceptable” and “condemnable” and alleged that it reflected the mindset of the BJP. The meeting also saw Kanhaiya Kumar, who is the AICC in-charge of the NSUI, talking about the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and telling the leadership that the party should not cede political space to such groups. Sources said many in the party share Kumar’s view. The party has so far maintained distance from the CJP even while supporting the student protests and linking it to the larger issue of jobs. Without naming CJP, the resolution passed by the CWC noted that “sustained pressure from student groups and the united Opposition – both inside and outside Parliament – compelled the Education Minister to resign”. The meeting also saw Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor pointing out that the word “bullying” used in the draft resolution in the context of US pressure on India should be substituted with some other word. While Kharge and others are said to have argued the word bullying was not unparliamentary, the final resolution merely said, “The Congress Working Committee is deeply concerned that the Modi government is sacrificing India’s agricultural and energy security, as well as its strategic sovereignty, in the face of American pressure.” Sources said Rahul Gandhi, in the context of the student and youth protests and his ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ campaign, reiterated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was now India’s past. Sources said he, however, did not agree with senior leader Manish Tewari’s assessment that the last serious student movement was the anti-Mandal agitation in the 1990s, which led to 62 people immolating themselves and more than 100 killed in police firing. Rahul said the ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ campaign was a very successful student movement. The CWC resolution later said the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ campaign was receiving an overwhelmingly positive response.