Assembly Elections 2022: Former Union law minister Ashwani Kumar quits Congress party

Just days before Punjab goes to polls, senior Congress leader from the state and former Union cabinet minister Ashwani Kumar today resigned from the party. Kumar, a veteran Congressman, is the first senior UPA cabinet minister to leave the Congress post its debilitating Lok Sabha election defeat in 2019.

In a letter to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, Kumar said, "Having given my thoughtful consideration to the matter, I have concluded that in the present circumstances and consistent with my dignity, I can best subserve larger national causes outside the party-fold."

"I am accordingly quitting the party after a long association of 46 years and hope to proactively pursue public causes inspired by the idea of transformative leadership, based on the dignitarian promise of a liberal democracy envisioned by our freedom fighters," he added.

While speaking to ANI, Kumar said, It was a painful decision. I thought long&hard,& realised the way internal processes of Congress are in place today, I couldn't continue any longer consistent with my dignity&self-esteem. I thought my shoulders weren't strong enough to carry weight of indifference.

The Congress has seen a string of exits by leaders, including its youth faces – among them the likes of Jyotiraditya Scindia, Jitin Prasada, R P N Singh. , Sushmita Dev, Priyanka Chaturvedi and Laliteshpati Tripathi – in the last two years. But Kumar’s exit signals that even the old guard is increasingly getting disenchanted with the state of affairs in the party.

Two other veterans — former Goa Chief Minister Luizinho Faleiro and former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh — recently parted ways with the party.