The decision of senior Congress leader GK Vasan to resign from the party on Monday and form his own outfit in Tamil Nadu has once again brought to the fore the incapability of the party high command to take timely decisions on organisational issues, say political observers.
People close to Vasan, son of the late Congress leader GK Moopanar, say they had been complaining to the leadership about the “undemocratic” functioning of a section of party leaders, including Mukul Wasnik, AICC general secretary in charge of Tamil Nadu, and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
However, the Congress leadership here made it clear that Vasan’s exit was a result of the resistance by the cadre against his efforts to control the State unit. Congress spokesperson Ajoy Kumar said Vasan had been expelled from the party.
The party high command took the decision on the basis of “inappropriate” comments made by Vasan about the party and its leadership, he added. Vasan’s exit would not impact the party in the State as most of the cadre were with the Congress, not the Vasan faction, Kumar emphasised.
However, some Congress leaders said Vasan’s resignation would be a setback for the party, which is trying to regain lost ground in the State with both the DMK and the AIADMK facing a leadership crisis. The inroads made by the BJP in Tamil Nadu are also a cause for worry for the Congress leadership.
Party vice-president Rahul Gandhi used to cite the “successful” membership drive of the Youth Congress a couple of years ago to prove that a big section wanted to free the State from bipolar politics. However, the Vasan faction argued that the campaign had been held without doing any ground work and the “gigantic” figures claimed by the State Youth Congress leadership were “manipulated”.