Gondia ZP: We respected sentiments of party workers, says Congress MLA

In the wake of his party joining hands with BJP to gain control over Gondia Zilla Parishad, local Congress MLA Gopal Das Agarwal said they had respected the sentiments of the party workers who did not want to go with the NCP.

In Gondia, the NCP recently emerged winner on 20 seats in the 53-member Zilla Parishad. The BJP bagged 17 and Congress 16 seats. However, Congress had a post-poll alliance with BJP and bagged the ZP president's post while the saffron party got the vice president's post, leaving NCP out of power.

The Congress contested the ZP and panchayat samiti elections independently against all opposition parties. "Our party workers didn't want to go with NCP as they wanted to have their party's president in ZP," Agarwal told PTI last night.

"More importantly, in the House on July 15, Congress' presidential candidate was first supported by BJP and then few Congress members supported BJP candidate for the vice president's post," he said.

However, Agarwal said, "For us both NCP and BJP are alike opposition and we had cooperated with NCP only on issue-based subjects but as there was no pre-poll alliance, it's wrong to term the coming of Congress and BJP together as 'unethical alliance'."

"Congress is one of the oldest and largest parties in the country and hence, it's not fair to decide the post of president or vice president on the basis of their strength in Gondia ZP," the Gondia legislator said.

"Our workers were in no mood to concede the president's post. But our state leaders, without discussing with the local leaders, issued a letter to follow the directives of supporting NCP candidate for president's post. But workers are the strength of any organisation and we have respected their sentiments. The party should not take the issue very seriously as elected members took a conscious decision," he said.

The NCP has not followed the alliance principles on more than one occasion. They extended support to BJP after the state Assembly election results and now they want to come close to Congress party as the state government is digging up the scams of their party leaders, Agarwal alleged.

The NCP leaders are under fear that they will be put behind the bars for their alleged wrongdoings, he claimed.

He said what had to happen has happened, now they want to move ahead and serve the people through ZP.

Congress will continue with its good work and strive for the welfare of the masses, Agarwal said.