The Congress is totally clueless on Article 370. Earlier, nobody would speak out of turn in the Congress; now, with the party rudderless and adrift, there are multiple and discordant voices, adding to the political din.
Jyotiraditya Scindia, the party general secretary, was the latest to join the bandwagon of those who have been overwhelmed by the BJP coup on Article 370.
Openly backing the Modi-Shah dispensation, he tweeted his support just before the Congress Working Committee meets to finalise its stand on Article 370.
‘‘I support the move on Jammu And Kashmir & Ladakh and its full integration into union of India. Would have been better if the constitutional process had been followed.
No questions would have been raised, then. Nevertheless, this is in our country's interest and I support this," Scindia tweeted.
However, there was cacophony within. On Monday, a former aide of Sonia Gandhi, Janardan Dwivedi, was the first to welcome the Modi government's decision and said that the "mistake" committed after independence had been rectified.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi, too, admitted that the party had been outfoxed. "We have been politically outwitted as we are among four or five parties that have opposed the move," Singhvi told NDTV.
Later, former Lok Sabha member Deepender Singh Hooda, Uttar Pradesh MLA Aditi Singh and others joined the chorus, indicating the disarray within.
One dissenting voice was that of senior party leader Ghulam Nabi Azad who criticized party colleagues for backing the government, saying those who do not know the history of Jammu and Kashmir and Congress should not remain in the party.
It is understood that Lok Sabha MPs met with Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the morning before the Kashmir debate was taken up in the Lok Sabha.
Sonia Gandhi, presented with the different scenarios, reportedly said, "We will oppose it and our objection is primary to the non-consultation with the political stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir.’’
Embarrassed by its lack of clarity, the party's Jammu and Kashmir Policy Planning Group went into a huddle the residence of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. But the group did not come out with a statement. Only a CWC would do that. Meanwhile, the political circus continued.
