Page 2 - Ghulam Nabi Azad

Congress slams former party leader Ghulam Nabi Azad over Article 370 stand

The Congress on Sunday accused its former leader Ghulam Nabi Azad of changing his stand on the Centre's move to abrogate Article 370 provisions after quitting the party and said his "lies" on the issue should be exposed. Azad has stated that he will not mislead the people over the issue of Article 370 as only a government with a two-thirds majority in Parliament can ensure the restoration of the provisions. The former Union minister has also said he will not raise issues over which he has no control. Responding to a tweet by J&K Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir asking if Azad had signed the Congress Working Committee resolution following the Centre's move abrogating Article 370 provisions, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Of course he did." "I was sitting behind him in Parliament when he spoke the previous day against abolition of article 370. His lies should be exposed," Ramesh said in a tweet. In an article in the Indian Express, senior Congress leader and former

Article 370 did not obstruct J-K's development, says former CM Azad

Former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday said Article 370 was not an obstacle in the development of Jammu and Kashmir, and claimed that the erstwhile state had performed better that national average on 30 indices. The former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir also claimed that he never ruled out the possibility of the restoration of Article 370, but said it could be a time-consuming process, adding only Prime Minister Narendra Modi could do so immediately. "It (Article 370) was not an obstacle. (As the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir), I introduced a three-shift work system, Assembly sittings were held six days a week, roads were built, a network of schools and colleges was created and environment clearances were given," Azad told reporters here. The former Union minister, who recently quit the Congress, said he had even countered Modi in Parliament on Article 370. "I have countered the prime minister and the home minister in Parliament on this issue. I have ...

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At Kashmir rally, Azad slams parties for promising restoration of Art 370

As he prepares to launch his political party, former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday slammed those promising the restoration of Article 370 even though it was not in their hands and said he would not mislead the people over the issue. In his maiden rally in Kashmir Valley after quitting the Congress last month, he said only a government with a two-thirds majority in Parliament can ensure the restoration of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. "Azad knows what can and cannot be done. I or the Congress party or the regional parties cannot give you back Article 370, neither can (TMC chief) Mamata Banerjee, or DMK or (NCP chief) Sharad Pawar," the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir said. The former Union minister said he would not raise issues over which he has no control. "Some people have been saying that I don't talk about Article 370. I want to tell them that Azad does not befool people for electoral gains," he said at the public meeting at Dak Bungalow ...

Will announce formation of new party within 10 days, says Ghulam Nabi Azad

Ghulam Nabi Azad, who recently parted ways with the Congress, on Sunday said he will announce the formation of his new political party within 10 days and asserted that its ideology will be "independent". The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said the agenda of the new political outfit would be to struggle for the restoration of J and K's statehood and to fight for the job and land rights of people. "I thank my colleagues who stand with me and are the base of my new party which, God willing, will be announced within the next 10 days," Azad said addressing his maiden public rally in the Kashmir Valley after resigning from the Congress on August 26. Speaking at a public meeting at Dak Bunglow in Baramulla in north Kashmir, Azad said his new party will be 'Azad' (free), like his name, in its ideology and thinking. "My party will be Azad. Many of my colleagues said we should name the party as Azad. But, I said never. But, it's ideology will be independent, which will not join or

Gandhis' constant attack forced me to retaliate, says Ghulam Nabi Azad

Former J&K Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Thursday attacked Congress' Rahul and Sonia Gandhi saying he had maintained a dignified silence since his departure from the party but their continued attack forced him to retaliate. Azad said this while holding a rally in his home town in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district. He said that despite repeated attacks on him by the Gandhis, he maintained a dignified silence for a long time but his single retaliation has now grounded them. Azad, who is on his maiden political campaign as a non-Congress leader ahead of announcing his own party in Jammu and Kashmir, addressed a rally at a jam packed Bhalla market in Doda's Bhadarwah. "After my resignation letter, I maintained a dignified silence for four days but when Sonia Gandhi and Rahul kept attacking at me, I was left with no other option but to make my point, as my religion and ethics of politics give you the right to protect yourself, when you are attacked," Azad said. "They tried to ...

Azad starts meeting delegations ahead of finalising name of his new party

Several delegations on Monday visited former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad at his residence here, a day after he returned from Delhi to a warm welcome by his supporters after quitting Congress last month to launch his own party. The delegations comprising large number of people from the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch and Chenab valley including Doda, Bhalessa, Khara, Batyas, Chilly and Gandoh, Kishtwar and Banial visited Azad at his Gandhi Nagar residence, Azad's close aide said. Addressing his first public meeting after returning from Delhi on Sunday, Azad had said that he is staying for four days in Jammu to meet delegations from different parts of the region before visiting Doda, Kishtwar and Kashmir. The process of interactions started this morning with various delegations visiting Azad and extending their support to him. The process of interactions will continue till Wednesday, the aide said. Azad, 73, ended his five-decade-long association with the Congress on

Azad twisting facts in his favour to befool people of J&K, claims Congress

The Congress on Sunday hit back at Ghulam Nabi Azad accusing him of working at the behest of his "political bosses" and said he was twisting facts in his favour to befool the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Congress general secretary, communications, Jairam Ramesh said Azad has again made a blatant attempts to distort history in an attempt to generate an undue sympathy from the people of the Union territory. "Ghulam Nabi Azad while continuing to fulfil his role assigned to him by his bosses today again made a blatant attempt to distort history in an attempt to generate an undue sympathy from the people of Jammu and Kashmir," Ramesh said in a statement while making a sharp rebuttal of Azad's claims made at a rally in Jammu. Ramesh claimed that the former J&K chief minister was lying while saying he fought first election in which he was elected to Lok Sabha on a Congress ticket on his own without any help from anyone. "This is a white lie. In 1980, he was elected as a Lok Sabha member .

Ghulam Nabi Azad says his fight for justice for people of J-K will continue

Former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday said his fight to ensure justice to the people of Jammu and Kashmir will continue till his last breath as he called for united efforts to bring down the "walls of hatred" for prosperity and development. Azad dismissed the remarks of Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari that he had voted for the abrogation of Article 370 in Parliament on August 5, 2019, as a deliberate attempt to "mislead the public" due to growing support of the people and leaders for him. "My fight for people to ensure justice to them will continue till my last breath," he said addressing a public rally, his first in Jammu after ending the five-decade-long association with the Congress. Thousands of his supporters including several former ministers and legislators accorded a warm welcome to Azad at the Jammu Airport and the venue of the public meeting, amid high pitch sloganeering in his favour. "We need support from each other. We have to get united and bring down th

Statehood, land and jobs for locals only my main agenda: Ghulam Nabi Azad

Former senior Congress leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Sunday that he would soon name his political party, and restoration of full statehood, right to ownership of land and right to employment for locals of J&K would be his main agenda.

After Congress exit, Ghulam Nabi Azad to hold first public meeting in Jammu

Former Union Minister and senior ex-Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who quit the party recently, will hold a public meeting today at Sainik Colony in Jammu

All set for Azad's first public rally in Jammu since leaving Congress

Ghulam Nabi Azad, who recently broke his five-decade-long association with the Congress, will begin his fresh political journey Sunday from Jammu where he would set up the first unit of his own party. All preparations have been completed for Azad's first public rally in Jammu, a close aide of the former chief minister said on the eve of the public meeting. Azad would be accorded a grand reception on his arrival from Delhi Sunday morning, and a procession would accompany him to the venue of the public meeting at the Sainik Colony, former minister G M Saroori said. Saroori is among over two dozen prominent legislators who resigned from the Congress in support of Azad. The 73-year-old Azad is likely to announce the formation of his own political party. Azad, 73, ended his five-decade association with the Congress on August 26, terming the party "comprehensively destroyed". He also lashed out at Rahul Gandhi for "demolishing" the party's entire consultative mechanism. Since Azad's ..

Some G23 leaders meet Ghulam Nabi Azad; discuss future strategy of grouping

Senior Congress leaders and members of G-23 Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Anand Sharma and Prithviraj Chavan on Tuesday met Ghulam Nabi Azad at his residence, days after the leader from Jammu and Kashmir resigned from the party after blaming the leadership. Sharma, Hooda and Chavan held discussions at Azad's residence and are learnt to have discussed the future strategy of the G-23. The Congress leaders are learnt to have also discussed the organisational elections, including that of the Congress president, amid reports that Shashi Tharoor, who is a member of the group, is considering contesting the election for the top party post. The G-23 had written a letter to Sonia Gandhi in August 2020 demanding an organisational overhaul and elections at all levels of the party. The G-23 had also been critical of certain decisions of the party leadership. Tuesday's meeting comes days after Azad resigned from the Congress and announced that he will float his own outfit in Jammu and Kashmir ahead of

Azad to hold public meeting in Jammu on Sept 4, first after quitting Cong

Ghulam Nabi Azad, who quit the Congress last week and has decided to float a political party, will hold a public meeting on September 4 at Sainik Colony in Jammu

Cong calls Azad 'selfish', says he left party when tasked to serve J&K

The Congress on Tuesday called Gulam Nabi Azad a "selfish person" and said he left the party when he was tasked to render his services in Jammu and Kashmir. It said Azad forgot the favours done to him by the party leadership by giving him important responsibilities in the past 50 years. "A sadhu made a cat, dog and finally a lion out of a mouse. But when the lion came to him to make sadhu a feast, he converted him back to mouse. Like this, my Congress party made someone a lion out of a mouse. If loin has bad intentions on his part, it (party) has the power to make him a mouse again. This power is in every worker of the Congress party," AICC in-charge for J-K and MP Rajani Patil said while addressing a rally here. She did not name Azad in her 'sadhu and mouse' tale though. Patil lashed out at Azad for being selfish in leaving the party at the time when the leadership tasked him to render his services in the Union territory. "When time came for you (Azad) to render services for the .

Senior leaders are leaving Congress as it has become 'family party': Nadda

BJP national president J P Nadda on Monday said that senior leaders with 40-50 years of association with the Congress are leaving the outfit as it has become a "family party". He claimed that the grand old party is getting weakened as it did not amalgamate regional aspirations with national aspirations and commitments. Without naming Ghulam Nabi Azad, who quit the Congress days ago, Nadda said, "Senior leaders with 40-50 years of association are leaving the party. It is because they have realised that Congress is now neither a national party nor a regional one. It has become a family party." He also listed out several regional outfits and claimed those too have become "family parties". "The Indian National Congress was such a big party. But now it is getting weakened as it didn't amalgamate regional aspirations with national aspirations and commitments," Nadda said. He gave examples of several states that the Congress had ruled for decades but is now not in power. "The BJP is not

Azad says forced to leave Congress, praises PM Modi for showing humanity

Days after his resignation from the Congress, Ghulam Nabi Azad has alleged that he was 'forced' to leave the party, and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for 'showing humanity'

Ghulam Nabi Azad timed his exit from the Congress for a 'bigger' role

Azad is not known to act impulsively. It would seem his hand was forced by the oncoming Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) elections. Its outcome will set the stage for his national political ambitions

Ghulam Nabi Azad has become 'azad' now: Union minister Smriti Irani

Taking a jibe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union minister Smriti Irani has said that Ghulam Nabi Azad has become 'azad' (free) now but Amethi has been "liberated" long ago. Veteran Congress leader Azad, who ended his five-decade association with the grand old party on Friday, accused Rahul Gandhi of demolishing the entire consultative mechanism and also pinned the blame on him for the 2014 electoral debacle. To a question on Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra and Azad leaving the Congress, Irani told reporters here on Saturday evening, "Congress's own leadership is commenting especially on the Gandhi family, so we do not need to add anything to it. Ghulam Nabi Azad sahib became 'Azad' (free) now but Amethi has been liberated long back." In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP leader Irani had defeated Rahul Gandhi in the Amethi parliamentary seat. Amethi was the traditional seat of the Gandhi family and was represented by Sanjay Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in

Ahead of CWC meet, Congress leaders reject Azad's criticism of Rahul

With Ghulam Nabi Azad's exit casting a shadow on the meeting of the Congress' apex decision-making body, party leaders on Saturday slammed him for "targeted personal vilification" of Rahul Gandhi while the BJP said the veteran leader has raised valid questions. Azad, who ended his five-decade association with the grand old party on Friday, had accused Rahul Gandhi of demolishing its entire consultative mechanism and also pinned the blame on him for the 2014 electoral debacle. Congress leader Sachin Pilot said when the party is preparing to take on the "misgovernance" of the BJP government, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister had not fulfilled his responsibility. "He (Azad) held various posts for over 50 years and now, when there is a need for the country and the party to raise people's issues, this was uncalled for," said Pilot. Asked about Azad's statement blaming Rahul Gandhi's action of tearing up a government ordinance in "full glare" of the media for the loss of the .