8 loyalists of Ghulam Nabi Azad put in papers too

Our Correspondents

Jammu, August 26

Eight supporters of Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad quit the party after the former Chief Minister announced his resignation.

Among them were former ministers GM Saroori, RS Chib and Jugal Kishore Sharma. Several senior leaders and former legislators of Congress, including Haji Abdul Rashid, Mohd Amin Bhat, Gulzar Ahmad Wani and Choudhary Mohammad Akram, also quit the party.

It has been learnt that a meeting of senior leaders with Azad was held during the day in which it was decided that a new party will be floated in J&K in the coming weeks. Azad’s aide and former Member of Legislative Council of the Congress, Naresh Gupta, informed that the situation that had arisen was expected as the Congress was not able to connect with the people of J&K. “A new party will be floated that will have many senior leaders of the Congress and also some of those who left the party to join other parties in J&K recently. We are in talks with many leaders who are ready to join us,” said Gupta.

Another leader said Azad, being a secular face, was accepted in both the regions of the Union Territory.

RS Chib stated in his resignation letter, “I feel that in the prevailing circumstances, the Congress has lost its momentum in contributing towards the future of my state.” Working president of the party, Raman Bhalla, said the party would take on any adversary and a strategy would be formed in the coming days.