Kisan Congress chief, AICC secretary resign from their posts

Congress continued to see resignations on Saturday with the party's farmer wing chief Nana Patole and AICC secretary Tarun Kumar submitting resignations from their respective posts.

Their resignations came a day after 145 office bearers tendered mass resignation following Congress President Rahul Gandhi sticking to his stance to resign in the wake of the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha elections.

Gandhi had offered to resign at the Congress Working Committee meeting on May 25 taking moral responsibility for the party's defeat. Party leaders have been urging him to continue in his post but he has been sticking to his position in an apparent move to bring greater accountability in the organisation.

Patole, who is chief of All India Kisan Congress, said he was resigning to support Gandhi.

"To support Rahul Gandhi, I have given my resignation from Akhil Bhartiya Kisan Congress. I will work as a soldier of Congress now," he told reporters here.

Some of the leaders who had quit their posts on Friday met AICC General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal on Saturday. Sources said Venugopal told them that if Gandhi does not stay as party chief, he too will resign.

The CWC had rejected Gandhi's offer to resign and authorised him to take all the steps for restructuring the party.

Party leader PL Punia told reporters in Raipur that CWC members had also offered to resign at the meeting last month. Punia is a permanent invitee to the working committee.

"Everyone had resigned. In CWC meeting, everyone had said that they are resigning. That is the thing," he said.

Punia, who is Congress in-charge of Chhattisgarh, was responding to a query about reports of him tendering his resignation.

Kumar wrote a letter to the Congress President saying that he was resigning due to the party's poor performance in Rajasthan, where he was co-incharge.

"You took the responsibility for the party's defeat and resigned from the post of president AICC. In my opinion, we are equally responsible for the party's defeat and me being co-incharge of Rajasthan takes the responsibility of the party's performance in the assigned region," he said.

Congress could win only 52 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, which is eight more than its 2014 tally.