The BJP has released the list of candidates for elections to the Rajya Sabha. Nirmala Sitharaman to contest from Karnataka, Piyush Goyal from Maharashtra.
Kapil Sibal, whose exit is another jolt for the electorally battered Congress that has seen a spate of high-profile resignations, said he dreams of bringing all opposition parties together in the fight against the BJP in 2024.
Prasada, a former member of the G23 who had written to Congress president Sonia Gandhi seeking an organisational overhaul before quitting the party and joining the BJP.
Congress leader in Lok Sabha and party state unit President, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, said that after enjoying so many important posts being with Congress for so many years and holding important portfolios in UPA-I and UPA-II governments, Sibal took such an action out of his greed for a chair in the Rajya Sabha.
Kapil Sibal has filed his nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections as an independent candidate from Uttar Pradesh. He enjoys the support of Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party.
Sources say Sibal may get the support of Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh like the last time. He may get the excess votes of SP and its allies.
Kapil Sibal said the Gandhis -- Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra - should step aside and give some other leader a chance to lead the party.
The G-23 meet comes at a time the Congress faces an existential crisis following its electoral defeats in the recent assembly elections, including in Uttar Pradesh where it won only two seats and a little over 2 per cent of the votes.
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge also targetted the G-23 leader.
Gehlot remarks came after Sibal triggered a row with his comments that the Gandhis should step aside and give other leaders a chance to lead the Congress.
Congress failed to put up a strong fight in the Assembly elections in five states. It lost power to AAP in Punjab.
India has slipped to 101st position in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021 of 116 countries, from its 2020 position of 94th and is behind its neighbours Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
The decision to hold the meeting comes after G-23 member and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad wrote a fresh letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi asking her to convene an urgent meeting of the top body.
Earlier this week, Sibal had urged the Supreme Court to act suo motu on the Lakhimpur Kheri violence. He later thanked the Chief Justice of India after the Supreme Court took cognisance of the incident and had said courts in India are temples of justice that can restore the faith of the voiceless.
"I feel helpless when we cannot start meaningful conversations within party forums. I also feel hurt and helpless when I see pictures of Congress workers raising slogans outside the residence of a colleague and MP. The safe harbour to which one can withdraw seems to be silence," Congress leader P Chidambaram wrote on Twitter.
Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said that the Congress party should make sure that they remain united and address their internal issues.
Anand Sharma has expressed disgust over party workers' protest outside Kapil Sibal's house after he raised questions over the functioning of the Congress.
Workers of Delhi Congress on Wednesday protested against senior party leader Kapil Sibal outside his residence in New Delhi, hours after the latter reiterated demands for sweeping reforms raised by G-23 leaders. The leader show placards reading 'Get Well Soon Kapil Sibal'.
Amid the Punjab Congress fiasco, Kapil Sibal launched an attack on Rahul Gandhi and wondered who in the party is taking decisions. He said that the party leaders' demand of organisational elections has not been met even a year after the letter was written by G-23.
Kapil Sibal, a member of the 'Group of 23' leaders who had written to Congress president Sonia Gandhi seeking organisational overhaul, has been demanding that the party be strengthened.
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