Uttarakhand Congress Spokesperson Deepak Balutia Resigns After Party Announces Prakash Joshi As Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar Candidate

Deepak Balutia, the Uttarakhand Congress state spokesperson, has tendered his resignation following the announcement of the Congress Lok Sabha candidate for the Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar constituency. The announcement came a day after the Congress announced that it would field Prakash Joshi from Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections against Union Minister of State for Defence and Tourism Ajay Bhatt.

On Sunday morning, Balutia submitted his resignation to Selja Kumari, the Congress's Uttarakhand in-charge and accused the party of "marginalising its grassroots workers". In his resignation letter, Balutia expressed his disappointment, stating that despite his dedicated service of 35 years to the party as a diligent worker and loyal soldier, he felt continuously overlooked by the leadership.

'Demoralisation within party'

"It is disheartening when grassroots workers, who are the backbone of any party, are marginalised by its leadership. Enduring the challenges and demoralisation within the party has not deterred my commitment to service over the past three and a half decades," Balutia wrote in his resignation letter. "I extend my sincere apologies to all my well-wishers and friends who have supported me in my journey. I assure them that my advocacy for public issues will persist unabated."

Uttarakhand will go to the general assembly polls on April 19. The elections for all five constituencies in the state will be conducted in single phase.