Sanjay Nirupam was expelled for his comments on Congress ally Shiv Sena UBT Uddhav Thackeray.
Mumbai:
Expelled Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam, who earlier today criticized Nehruvian secularism, has now dropped a broad hint about his future plans with a resounding ‘Jai Shri Ram’. When asked what next, the 59-year-old told reporters, “I have plans, I am definitely joining something. I will explain. You can take meaning from Jai Shri Ram”.
Mr Nirupam was expelled yesterday for his inappropriate comments on Congress ally Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena UBT after the latter announced candidates for 17 seats. Among them was Mumbai North West, a seat Nirupam was eyeing.
The senior leader had won the North seat of Mumbai in 2009 but lost the subsequent elections in 2014 and 2019 from Mumbai North and Mumbai North West. Today he made it clear that he would fight, if necessary from the other side.
The Mumbai North West seat is part of the Shiv Sena kitty led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The party has not yet announced its candidate.
The Uddhav Thackeray faction has fielded Amot Kirtikar from the seat. Mr Nirupam told reporters: “I will not allow him to become an MP. I will contest and defeat him”.
The former MP, who was punished by the Congress for ‘indiscipline’ and ‘anti-party statements’, was defiant. While critical, he had said, “Secularism does not mean ignoring one’s own religion…Nehruvian secularism that has no place for religion in society has expired”.
There were other barbs aimed at Congress and its allies.
The Congress is now history and has no future, and that the Maha Vikas Aghadi is a merger of three “sick units”, he said. There are five power centers in the Congress, he said: the three members of the Gandhi family, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and (party general secretary) KC Venugopal, Mr Nirupam had added.
“There is a huge communication gap in Congress, there are a lot of lobbies,” he told reporters.
“I was not heard by the management. The way the alliance with Maharashtra was handled was wrong. Giving seats to Sena was a disastrous move, including my seat. They surrendered to the Sena and gave the seat to an imposter under the radar of the Enforcement Directorate,” he added.