Congress's Gourav Vallabh quits 'directionless' party ahead of LS polls

In his resignation letter, Congress leader Gourav Vallabh cited the party's caste census promise, the decision to skip the Ram temple ceremony, and other reasons

Congress national spokesperson Gourav Vallabh resigned on Thursday, dealing a significant blow to the Congress party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

In a letter to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Gourav Vallabh called the grand old party 'directionless' and cited reasons for his exit, such as the caste census, and said that he could not raise 'anti-Sanatan' slogans.

"I do not feel comfortable with the directionless way in which the Congress party is moving forward today. I can neither raise anti-Sanatana slogans nor abuse the wealth creators of the country. I am resigning from all posts and primary membership of the Congress party," Gourav Vallabh wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

He added, "I joined the Congress with an aim to use my knowledge in finance for the welfare of the country. Yes, we are not in power today, but we could have presented our manifesto and our policies in a better way. However, this was not done at any level of the party."

 

Vallabh, who contested for the Congress in the Rajasthan Assembly elections last year and the 2019 Jharkhand Assembly polls, added that there was a message going out that the party only works for a 'particular religion.'

"We are moving in the wrong direction. On the one hand, we talk about caste census, and on the other, it appears that we are completely opposed to the Hindu society. This is sending the wrong message that we are biased towards a specific community. Also, this is against basic principles of the Congress," Vallabh stated.

He also noted that in recent years, the party has not lived up to the expectations of 'New India.'

"We have lost our ground-level connection, and therefore, did not realise what 'New India' expects from us. Because of this, we have failed repeatedly in coming to power or to become an effective Opposition. This demotivates workers like me. No positive change is possible if a worker cannot reach his leader directly," he said, adding that the leadership's decision to skip the Ram temple ceremony, 'shocked' and 'upset' him.