Mumbai: A day before his poll rally in Sangamner in Ahmednagar district on Friday, Congress president Rahul Gandhi approved the resignation of disgruntled Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil as leader of the opposition. However, Vikhe-Patil is still in the party as a legislator and hence the party can claim the post of LoP after Vikhe-Patil.
Vikhe-Patil had tendered his resignation as LoP in March, after his son Dr Sujay was not considered for the ticket from the Ahmednagar Lok Sabha constituency by his party. Later, Dr Sujay joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which gave him the party ticket against Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) candidate Sangram Jagtap.
Vikhe-Patil’s resignation, announced by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Ashok Chavan came a day ahead of party President Rahul Gandhi’s rally in Sangamner in on Friday. “Vikhe-Patil has resigned as Leader of Opposition (LoP). His resignation has been accepted by Gandhi. I nevertheless urge him to reconsider his decision and not think about leaving the party,” said Chavan, speaking in Shirdi on Thursday.
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Meanwhile, in yet another setback to the Congress in Ahmednagar, the party’s district president Karan Sasane also quit his post on Thursday, allegedly on the instructions of the disgruntled Vikhe-Patil. Commenting on this, Chavan said that the party’s district unit had been dissolved and that a new district president would soon be appointed along with fresh members who would constitute the new district Congress committee.
Sasane’s resignation is seen as a direct fall-out of the bitter and longstanding rivalry between Vikhe-Patil and senior Congressman Balasaheb Thorat, whose stronghold is Sangamner, the place where Gandhi is holding his rally. On Wednesday evening, Vikhe-Patil, along with Sasane’s followers held a meeting where they actively sought to undermine the Congress’ candidate for the Shirdi Lok Sabha seat, MLA Bhausaheb Kamble.
