Congress MPs moot mass resignation to rally behind disqualified Rahul

As the Congress is looking at a prolonged political struggle after the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi, a group of young MPs is learnt to have mooted resignation of all party lawmakers from Parliament in solidarity with the top leader, who is facing attacks from the ruling BJP.

The suggestion, several members said, was first put up by Ravneet Bittu during a meeting of senior leaders on Friday, hours after the notification on Rahul’s disqualification was issued. Party MP Manickam Tagore was one of those who supported Bittu’s proposal. The meeting was chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi in attendance.

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However, a general secretary of the party told DH that the matter is yet to come up for discussion within the Congress Parliamentary Party. The senior leader added that it looks implausible that the matter will be taken up soon. The suggestion about mass resignations in the Lok Sabha came up after an informal discussion among at least half-a-dozen Congress lawmakers; the suggestion has, since then, gathered some momentum.

Since Rahul’s disqualification, there were meetings of Congress MPs from Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on Monday and Tuesday but the issue was not raised, as the leadership has indicated to the MPs that it may not be politically prudent.

A first-time MP, who wished to remain anonymous, told DH that they wanted to show solidarity with Rahul but they were told that if they insist on the resignation, it could be embarrassing for other party MPs. The leadership was of the view that this could be counter-productive, as it would leave the party “voiceless” in Parliament. On Friday, sources said this line of thought prevented any further discussion on the suggestion that MPs should resign.

An MP from the south said that there was a view that they would face questions from the people if they resigned, as they were elected for five years. “We have a tenure of five years, and we are also answerable to the people who elected us,” said the member. Another member, from the East, said that also under consideration is the fear that the party could face defections to other parties.

A leader close to Rahul said that the division of opinions on the matter also indicates the lack of accountability since the Gandhis have taken a step back. “Unless he directly gets involved in the affairs of the party, not much moves and there seems to be no liability,” the leader said. An indication of this was the lack of party workers at Sunday’s Sankalp Satyagraha at Rajghat where less than 500 people turned up, angering Priyanka, said the leader.

The Congress has been protesting vociferously against Rahul’s conviction in the defamation case and subsequent disqualification from Lok Sabha and the issue has brought Opposition parties, including Trinamool Congress, together. In Lok Sabha, MPs TN Prathapan and Hibi Eden had torn the notification of disqualification and threw it at the Chair along with a black scarf on Monday while this protest was repeated by Jothimani and Ramya Haridas on Tuesday.