Rebellion set to worsen Congress crisis in Bihar

Patna: The Congress party in Bihar is facing a political crisis. The state unit fears a rebellion from its own legislators.

The situation has occurred after over two dozen Congress functionaries including former BPCC president Ashok Chaudhary left the party and joined the ruling JD(U).

Observers say the recent development indicates that the footprint of the grand old party is shrinking rapidly.

Senior leaders of the Congress said that Ashok Chaudhary and three other MLCs decided to quit after the state unit ordered their suspension. Party insiders say that Mr Chaudhary’s request for a separate seating arrangement inside the legislative council triggered their suspension from the Congress.

“We have decided to join JD (U) because we cannot face humiliation anymore”, Former BPCC President Ashok Chaudhary said after leaving the Congress party.

Mr Chaudhary blamed Congress general secretary C.P. Joshi for misleading high command about party’s affair in the state. He said that he decided to join hands with Nitish Kumar’s party JD(U) after Congress president Rahul Gandhi didn’t give much importance to his grievances.

The situation within the Congress party worsened further after seventeen other party leaders owing allegiance to Ashok Chaudhary followed his footsteps and joined the ruling JD(U) earlier this month.

The looming crisis can be gauged from the fact that the party leadership in the state as well as the center, is worried that the steps taken by Ashok Chaudhary and others may harm not only the party’s image but also their effort to formulate a strong alternative against the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of 2019 general elections.