A wedding, a death in the family, a long-awaited birth, and a bout of fever. These are some of the reasons cited by Youth Congress leaders in Madhya Pradesh who have been suspended for missing the INDIA bloc’s November 1 rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan that the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, had addressed.
The Youth Congress has suspended 60 office-bearers from Madhya Pradesh — including nine district presidents, five vice-presidents, 14 general secretaries, and 32 secretaries — for not attending the rally calling for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. The suspensions, announced in an order dated November 3, are effective immediately and will remain in force until further notice.
The rally was a major show of strength for the Congress and its INDIA bloc allies. The Youth Congress leadership has described the absence of the Madhya Pradesh office-bearers as “organisational indiscipline” and issued the suspension orders following instructions from the outfit’s national leadership.
However, some of those suspended told The Indian Express they had reasons for not attending the rally and that the organisation should have sought their explanation before taking action.
Saurabh Sharma, the Youth Congress’s Maihar district president, said he missed the rally because of the birth of his elder brother’s son. “I had a programme because my elder brother had a son. I informed the state president and other officials. I had also given the invitation. Later, I was informed about this rally. After 12 years, my brother had a son, I could not miss it,” he said.
Sharma said he was among the Youth Congress district president who regularly attends the organisation’s programmes. “I have attended all the programmes. I am one of the top district presidents who attends the programmes. I have been involved with the Youth Congress for many years. We will appeal this decision,” he said.
Sharma said the leadership should have issued a show-cause notice and sought an explanation before suspending the leaders. “Those who did not have genuine excuses should be removed, but those who had issues should not have been suspended,” he added.
Rohit Rajouriya, a Youth Congress general secretary, said he missed the event because of his uncle’s death. “My uncle died and I informed the state president. I also informed Ramashankar ji of the Youth Congress. I had asked him for permission,” he said.
Manvendra Mishra, the Youth Congress’s Anuppur district president, said he could not travel to Delhi because he was unwell. However, he said he had not informed the organisation’s state leadership.
“I was sick and could not go due to my health. I had not informed the state leadership. There was a communication gap. But my entire team went to the rally. We had got everyone’s tickets. I will provide my explanation to the leadership,” Mishra said.
Like him, Youth Congress vice-president Rajveer Singh Kudiya and general secretary Suman Maurya also cited health reasons for not attending the Ramlila rally. Expressing regret, Kudiya said he could not join the rally because he was extremely unwell. “There was no other reason. I am always active at party programmes and in my constituency,” he said.
Maurya said she was down with fever, cough, and cold “because of the change in weather”. “I could not inform anyone. I did not even take anyone’s calls. My seniors kept calling me, but I was sick and could not inform them that I would not be attending,” she said.
Shivraj Singh Yadav, a Youth Congress vice-president, said he missed the rally because of his younger sister’s wedding. “My younger sister was getting married. I was the only brother. There was a lot of work that had to be done. I could not go to the rally. I have informed my seniors about the reasons. Now I am awaiting their decision,” he said.
Youth Congress’s Madhya Pradesh in-charge Shivi Singh Chauhan said the suspension orders were issued based on “attendance and prior communication” with the leadership. “The organisation has taken action based on their track records. Action was not taken against those who informed us about their absence; action was taken only against those who did not come,” Chauhan said.
Anand Mohan J is an award-winning Senior Correspondent for The Indian Express, currently leading the... Read More
