Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday said he wants Congress to perform well in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections and called the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) incapable of defeating the BJP.
The veteran leader, who resigned from Congress in August, said he separated from the party not because of its policy of secularism but due to its weak system. “Although I have separated from Congress, I wasn’t against their policy of secularism. It was only due to the party’s system getting weakened. I would still want Congress to perform well in Gujarat and HP Assembly polls. AAP isn’t capable to do so,” he was quoted as saying by ANI in Srinagar.
Azad launched his new party, Democratic Azad Party, in September, a month after ending his over five-decade-long association with the Congress. In his five-page resignation letter to the then Congress president Sonia Gandhi, he had described senior leader Rahul Gandhi as “immature” and “childish” and accused the leadership of “foisting a non-serious individual” at the helm of the party.
Meanwhile, Nabi said the Arvind Kejriwal-led party has failed in Punjab and it is unlikely people will vote for them again. He also praised Congress for being inclusive of Hindu and Muslim farmers.
Speaking on the upcoming assembly elections, he said: “AAP is merely a party of UT Delhi. They can’t run Punjab efficiently, only Congress can challenge BJP in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh as they have an inclusive policy.”
Responding to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s hints at the possibility of the Centre considering restoring state status to Jammu and Kashmir, Azad said he has tabled the issue several times and welcomes the move.
The veteran leader is on a tour of Doda where he will be meeting delegations and addressing rallies in the coming days.
The (DAP) chairman, in October, formed various teams for submitting proposals for constituting zonal and district committees of the party ahead of the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir. Home Minister Amit Shah has assured the people of Jammu and Kashmir that the Assembly elections would be held after the completion of the ongoing exercise of electoral rolls.
(With inputs from agencies)
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