Upset Congress may rap Sanjay Nirupam

A day after drawing public ire, the Congress is extremely upset with their Mumbai chief Sanjay Nirupam for his “fake surgical strike” remarks. Although the party has disowned his stand, there are no clear indications as yet, if the party is contemplating any action against Mr Nirupam. Former minister Naseem Khan accused Mr Nirupam of playing “petty politics” over a nationally sensitive issue, while the Shiv Sena demanded sedition charges against the former MP.

A senior Congress leader who has direct access to the party’s political circles in Delhi confirmed that the Congress is indeed upset with him. “Mr Nirupam’s statement will badly affect our prospects in the BMC elections,” the leader claimed. No sooner had Mr Nirupam made the “fake surgical strike” remarks and demanded proof from the ruling BJP-government, than a battery of Congress leaders disowned his comments, saying “those are his personal views and not of the Congress”.

When asked, whether Mr Nirupam would be sacked from the party for his remarks, the leader said, “At this juncture, I don’t think the party president will take any action against Mr Nirupam, since the BMC polls are three months down the line. If he (Mr Nirupam) is sacked now, appointment of new city president will take time. It is not possible to strengthen the party for a new president in such a short span,” the senior Congress leader said.

Another senior Congress leader told The Asian Age that Mr Nirupam had committed a big mistake by not taking the party into confidence before making such statements.