New Delhi: Inner turmoil has recently overtaken Uttarakhand Congress, as former chief minister Harish Rawat's cryptic tweets, taken by many to be rebellious outburst against party leadership, surfaced on Wednesday.
Rawat's statements have created a stir within Congress, with the former CM, in his series of tweets, making statements such as "organizational structure for cooperation in most places, instead of extending the hand of cooperation, is either turning its back or playing a negative role", while resembling the upcoming election in the state as a 'sea to swim in' and claiming his 'hands and legs are tied'.
With many decoding the former CM's comments as a rebellion against party leadership, former Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat, in his exclusive interview to ETV Bharat, said on Wednesday that the statement displayed how Harish Rawat is hurt and angry with the party.
Also read: Harish Rawat on the road to rebellion?
Alleging that internal democracy doesn't exists within Congress, Rawat said that the senior Congress leader's statements about there being 'crocodiles inside the party' were quite serious.
Responding to the significance of Congress' electoral chances in both Punjab and Uttarakhand, Rawat said, "There is complete disintegration of Congress both in Punjab and in Uttarakhand. In Punjab, as soon as Harish Rawat was replaced (as election in-charge) and Amarinder Singh's stepped down as chief minister, the cracks were visible. The public has rejected (these decisions) and dissatisfaction among party leaders, too, is increasing".
"He has clearly said that there are some crocodiles inside the party who are after him. I think there is a big problem within Congress, especially if such as senior leader makes such a statement. For BJP, on the other hand, it is quite a good omen", Rawat said.
The former CM, however, said that he cannot yet answer whether Harish Rawat, from this point onwards, would be linked closely to BJP.
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Being asked whether everything was okay within the state BJP unit and the probable face of the upcoming Uttarakhand elections, Rawat did not make a direct comment on Dhami, noting however that Uttarakhand had seen the major chunk of its development under the able leadership of PM Narendra Modi.
"The election will be fought on the basis of development. Uttarakhand has seen immense development under PM Modi. Train tracks have been laid out till Char Dham, people living in the hilly regions are readily able to access drinking water and toilet facilities. This level of development was never seen before. People of Uttarakhand are happy with the all-round development and will vote for BJP for the same reason", he said.
