After openly registering his resentment for not getting due recognition in the Party, Senior Congress leader Jagdambika Pal, finally resigned from the primary membership of the Congress Party as well as from the lok Sabha accusing the leadership for forcing him to quit the party.
"I am always a Congress loyal but the party leadership's lack of recognition and interaction with senior leaders in the Party had forced me to leave the party while other leaders like me in the Party are frustrated with the leadership act," claimed Pal here on Friday evening. Interestingly, Pal claimed that he joined the Congress when he was just 18-years-old old and always served the Party even when he was 70-years old now concealing the fact that this is third time when he left Congress to seek greener pasture else where. "I have joined the youth congress and continued to serve the party. But it is a sad day for me when I have to leave the party," he said. When he was asked the reason for his resignation, Pal said," leaders like me are not respected in the party now days due to our age or seniority." ``In Congress ,the dedicated leaders are being neglected while the turncoats are getting all the importance and they have become the owner of the Party," Pal charged without taking any names. However, just few days back, he openly took name of Beni Prasad Verma, whom he claimed to have come from Samajwadi Party and used pressure tactics on the High Command which helped him to get a cabinet berth.
Addressing a press conference here after his return from New Delhi, Pal refused to disclose his future course of political action but stressed that he will contest the elections from the same Doomariyaganj lok Sabha seat."I am going to my constituency and will seek their support on my future course of action," he said while refusing to say any words on Narendra Modi or whether he had any change in opinion about Communal forces. He said that now his main agenda would be to continue his work for the development of his lok Sabha constituency and connect Sidharthnagar with all the major metros of the country. Earlier Pal submitted his resignation letters to lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar and asked her to accept it with immediate effect. He has also sent his resignation from the primary membership of the Congress to party president Sonia Gandhi.
Meanwhile Congress leaders dumped resignation of Pal as a routine one making no impact on propect of the Congress in UP. Congress had reportedly hold back the announcement of Pal as the candidate from Doomariyaganj after reports about his hob-nobbing with BJP was disclosed, a senior Congress leader said. On the other hand UP BJP president laxmikant Bajpai said that there was no proposal of Pal joining the party at any stage. But insiders in the BJP claim that he could be given ticket by the party from Doomariyaganj seat. He had also met BJP president Rajnath Singh a couple of times in the recent past.
UP Congress spokesperson Amarnath Agarwal criticised Pal for being so opportunistic." Mr Pal was given all respect and posts in the party, but his act could not be justified," he said. " He has been given big posts like UP Congress president and even made spokesperson of party at the national level. But his act was certainly a stab on the back of the Congress," he stated. Pal has always jumped the party on different occasions and joined loktrantrik Congress and Tiwari Congress by defecting from the Congress in the past. He also earned the name of becoming the Chief Minister of UP for 24 hours but was de-recognised by the High Court. The leader was a two time MlC, three time MlA and a former minister of the state before he went to Parliament for the first time in 2009.