New Delhi, July 02: Congress parliamentary party treasurer Suresh Kalmadi today dismissed as "overreaction out of nervousness" NCP's threat to pull out of the ruling coalition in Maharashtra if Congress leaders did not "mend their ways" and stop making "irresponsible statements" damaging the Sharad Pawar-led party's image. The former union minister told the NCP's statement has come in the wake of demands from Congressmen all over the state during party conventions that the party should fight on its own in the next elections.
Kalmadi, once a close associate of Pawar, said that the lightning tours of Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde and PCC president Ranjit Deshmukh of the state and party conventions has led to a "massive awareness" among the rank and file which want to go it alone.
He, however, said partymen wanted party president Sonia Gandhi to take a final decision in the matter.
State party workers, he said, were wondering that when leaders like SP president Mulayam Singh Yadav had backtracked on foreign origin issue of Gandhi, why Pawar was not following suit.
Besides, Kalmadi said partymen were worried over the damage to the image of the organisation due to the cooperative scam. His statement was apparently referring to involvement of several NCP leaders in the scam in the state.
"We are talking about next elections. No one has talked about president's rule.... breaking of the present government", he added.
Bureau Report