Conscience clear, resolve stronger: P Chidambaram

Striking a defiant note, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said that the 105 days spent in Tihar Jail had made him stronger in spirit and body.

“Sleeping on a wooden board in jail has strengthened my neck, my spine and my back. My neck is stronger, my spine is stronger and my head is stronger,” Chidambaram told reporters here, sending a message to the Modi government that his “pre-trial incarceration” has not weakened his resolve to speak out against the BJP.

Chidambaram also sought to co-relate his time behind bars with the 75 lakh people of the Kashmir Valley “who have been denied their basic freedoms since August 4, 2019”, referring to the clampdown in J&K after the Centre's decision to read down Article 370 and bifurcate the state into two union territories.

“I am particularly concerned about the political leaders who have been detained without charges. Freedom is indivisible: if we must preserve our freedom, we must fight for their freedom,” he said.

At the outset, Chidambaram made it clear that he would not speak on the cases against him as directed by the Supreme Court, but asserted that his record as Minister and his conscience were “absolutely clear”.

“In the last 106 days, I was strong in spirit and I have become stronger in spirit and body,” the former finance minister he said here without going into details about the time spent in prison.