There May Be Some Truth In What Ashwani Kumar Said In Resignation Letter On Congress: Manish Tewari

Manish Tewari said the concerns raised by Ashwani Kumar about the functioning of the Congress were also pointed out by the 'G23' leaders in 2020.

Congress MP Manish Tewari and former Union law minister Ashwani Kumar (PTI file photo)

New Delhi: A day after veteran leader Ashwani Kumar quit the Congress, party MP Manish Tewari on Wednesday said there may be some truth in what the former Union law minister wrote in his resignation letter to Sonia Gandhi.

Manish Tewari said the concerns raised by Kumar about the functioning of the Congress were also pointed out by the "G23" leaders in 2020.

The "G23" refers to the group of 23 senior Congress leaders who wrote a letter to Sonia Gandhi in August 2020 requesting an active leadership and organisational rejig in the party.

READ | Cong Is Losing In Punjab, Says Ashwani Kumar After Quitting Party

At a press conference in Ludhiana, Tewari, MP from Anandpur Sahib, said the resignation of Kumar "was a matter of great concern for most of us".

"He is a good person, a very good lawyer who has excellent arguments. Something may be true in what he has said in his resignation letter. These concerns were brought to the notice of the party high command by the G23 group in 2020. But his eye is on a Rajya Sabha seat," PTI quoted Tewari as saying.

Ashwani Kumar resigned from the Congress on Tuesday after a 46-year association, saying he can best serve national causes outside the party fold.

"Having given my thoughtful consideration to the matter, I have concluded that in the present circumstances and consistent with my dignity, I can best subserve larger national causes outside the party fold," Kumar said in his resignation letter.

In an interview with PTI, Kumar also said Congress had lost touch with the ground reality and no longer reflected the national mood. He said there was a lack of inspirational leadership and debilitating processes of internal functioning.

Manish Tewari also singled out former Congress state unit chief Sunil Jakhar, saying those raking up the Hindu-Sikh issue in Punjab were playing in the hands of Pakistan's ISI.

Tewari said the people of the state have never resorted to sectarian politics and they believe in "Punjab, Punjabi and Punjabiyat".

He, however, exuded confidence that the Congress would return to power in Punjab with a thumping majority.

(With PTI inputs)