Former Lok Sabha member Annu Tandon quits Congress

Senior Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh and former MP from Unnao, Annu Tandon has resigned from the primary membership of party citing "misalignment with the state-level leadership."

Announcing her resignation, Tandon said, "Today, I have submitted my resignation from the Indian National Congress. My statement with regard to this is being shared by me. Need love and blessings of all my well-wishers!"

In a statement released to the media, Tandon said that she has sent her resignation to party president Sonia Gandhi and requested her to accept it immediately.

By-election to the Bangarmau Assembly seat of Unnao, the Lok Sabha constituency Tandon had represented in 2009, is slated for early next month.

While stating that she had continuously received warmth and guidance of both Congress presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi during her 15-year association with the party, Tandon said there is a "misalignment between the state-level leadership" and she did not see their support coming her way since the past several months.

“The state leadership of the party has focused only on social media management and self branding and is oblivious to the deep divisions in the party and the voters it has thus caused,” Tandon said.

She said canards were being spread about her and her associates by the local, irrelevant, and chosen few.

Terming it as both "painful and disgusting", she said there was no attempt by the party leadership to stem this.

Tandon said she had raised the matter with incharge of UP Priyanka Gandhi, who had assured that the Congress president is fully apprised of the situation.However, the matter had remained unresolved.

My ideology and principles have been aligned with the senior leadership of the party and my resignation does not change this, she said, adding she would be consulting her workers on the future path.

(With inputs from PTI)