Loyalists return to Congress, but doors still shut for Azad

K C Venugopal said it was like these leaders had taken a leave from the party for two months

Seventeen Jammu and Kashmir leaders who left with Ghulam Nabi Azad three months ago returned to the Congress on Friday after they felt they were being "taken on a wrong path abandoning secularism", but the party appeared in no hurry to open the doors to the veteran leader who has attacked Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Even as Azad's close aides returned to the party, a top party functionary told DH that Azad is welcome to join the Bharat Jodo Yatra if he believes in Congress ideology but the question of returning to the party is a "no go area at present".

Also read | No plan to return to Congress: Ghulam Nabi Azad

The leader said Rahul Gandhi has written to top leaders Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti among others in the state but has not personally invited Azad to join the yatra when it reaches Jammu and Kashmir later this month. "Has his Democratic Azad Party been registered? Rahulji has written to leaders whose parties have been registered," the leader said.

The leader said Azad has to make clear "certain issues" and "apologise for the uncharitable remarks" in his letter, though he said the party is not thinking of extending an olive branch on its own to the Kashmir leader.

Congress paraded 17 out of the 19 leaders, including former Deputy Chief Minister Tarachand and three-time Minister Peerzada Mohammed Sayeed, who were to join the party at AICC headquarters here in what is seen as a message to Azad. Two of the 19 leaders could not reach Delhi for the induction ceremony while the initial plans were to induct the leaders in Srinagar but the venue was shifted to Delhi for political messaging.

Tarachand and others were expelled by Azad, who had quit Congress in August last year and announced the formation of DAP later, recently as differences cropped up in the party.

At the press conference where the leaders re-joined the party, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal made light of their departure earlier saying they had not left the party but were on a "leave of two months" and now they have rejoined. He said they had left because of "some misunderstanding" and this is only a beginning and "when the Yatra is entering Jammu and Kashmir, all people with Congress ideology and who want a united India will join the party".

To repeated questions on reinduction of Azad and whether the Congress has initiated any dialogue with him, Venugopal said Azad himself has denied it. He said he has already said those who believe the ideals of the yatra can join but sidestepped questions on whether Congress has extended an invite to its former leader like it did to Abdulla and Mehbooba.

Asked whether the Congress considered Azad as part of secular forces, Venugopal did not give a direct answer but said, "you are intelligent enough to have your own judgement. All things are in the public domain."

Tarachand said he joined Azad as he got carried away by emotions and friendship of 40 years and quit Congress in haste. "I fell into a spell of friendship. But I was reminded of Congress with which I have been a member for 50 years. Secular forces in Jammu and Kashmir have to be strengthened. When we felt that we were being taken on a wrong path abandoning secularism, we decided to return," he said.

Asked whether he would advise Azad to return, he said he is a small worker while Azad is an experienced senior leader and he was nobody to provide any guidance to the veteran.

Peerzada said there is a need to strengthen and unite all secular forces in Jammu and Kashmir, where terrorism has increased instead of decreasing in the last eight years.