Odisha Cong MLA Jogesh Singh resigns amid reports of expulsion

Congress Sundargarh MLA Jogesh Singh tendered his resignation from the party on Friday on moral grounds after being suspended from the party on Thursday. He also resigned from the post of a member of Odisha Legislative Assembly.

Singh was suspended from the party after allegations of anti-party activities surfaced against him. In the resignation letter submitted to the party president Rahul Gandhi, Singh stated that he was astonished by the party's decision.

He wrote, "I am quite astonished about the decision taken by the disciplinary committee of the Odisha Congress Party without any show cause notice and explanation."

Elaborating upon the allegations, he said: "I came to know about the so-called allegations against me, out of which one is praising Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and the second one is regarding my non-participation in an upcoming party meeting (called) by the president, AICC, to be held on Jan 25."

Earlier, Naba Kishore Das, who was the Congress' Odisha working president, quit the party and decided to join Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on January 24.

"There is no specific reason for this decision to quit the party. This is not about party, this is about 'mati' (soil). My supporters want me to fight from a different party in 2019. So, I am accepting their wish and going to do what they want, because they have always given their support to me and (it is) because of them I won the elections," Das told media.