Kharge said he was “hurt” by Congress leaders’ silence over the Haldwani purification row, while the CWC also discussed CJP, US pressure and student protests.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge expressed rare personal anguish at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Wednesday, saying he was “hurt” that many party leaders had not publicly condemned a ‘purification’ ritual held after his recent visit to Haldwani in Uttarakhand.
Kharge told the meeting that he had not expected leaders to speak up merely because he was a Dalit, reported The Indian Express. However, the ‘shuddhikaran havan’ left him feeling humiliated, and he was disappointed that many CWC members had not openly supported him on the issue, sources said.
The Congress had alleged that those behind the ritual were linked to the BJP and said the event reflected a casteist mindset. The BJP had distanced itself from the programme. Kharge had also raised the matter in the Rajya Sabha.
At the CWC meeting, Kharge said he was particularly disappointed that some of the “good-looking people” who receive significant media attention had not spoken out. AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said the party had raised the issue and condemned it, but those present said Kharge appeared unconvinced.
Kharge did not name any leader. However, he also pointed out, without identifying anyone, that some party members often make comments or write articles that do not reflect the Congress line.
Later, briefing reporters about the CWC discussions, Venugopal described the ‘purification’ incident as “unacceptable” and “condemnable”, and alleged that it reflected the BJP’s mindset.
Kanhaiya Kumar Raises CJP Issue
The meeting also saw Kanhaiya Kumar, the AICC in-charge of the NSUI, raise concerns about the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Kumar told the leadership that the Congress should not cede political space to such groups, sources said.
Several leaders in the party are understood to share his view. The Congress has so far kept its distance from the CJP, even while supporting student protests and linking them to the broader issue of unemployment.
The CWC resolution did not name the CJP. It said that “sustained pressure from student groups and the united Opposition – both inside and outside Parliament – compelled the Education Minister to resign”.
Rahul Gandhi also spoke about the ongoing student and youth protests and his ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ campaign. According to sources, he reiterated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was now India’s past.
However, Rahul disagreed with senior Congress leader Manish Tewari’s assessment that the anti-Mandal agitation of the 1990s was the last major student movement in the country.
Tewari had referred to the protests against the Mandal Commission recommendations, during which 62 people allegedly immolated themselves and more than 100 were killed in police firing. Rahul said the ‘Chhatron ki Goonj’ campaign itself had emerged as a highly successful student movement.
The CWC resolution later said the campaign was receiving an overwhelmingly positive response.
