Congress doomed beyond redemption: Amarinder Singh

Chandigarh, Aug 26 (IANS) Punjab Lok Congress President and former Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Friday said the Congress, under the current dispensation, was doomed beyond redemption.

"When you cannot retain leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad who spent his entire life with the party, there is something terminally wrong with your functioning and the way you treat your senior and seasoned leaders," he remarked in a statement, released here.

Questioning the claims of certain leaders that the party had given Azad so much, Amarinder Singh said that "it is a reciprocal process". "Party is made by the blood and sweat and hard work of leaders," he remarked, adding: "It cannot be a one-man show."

Congratulating Azad for taking the bold decision, he said that a conscientious and sincere leader cannot compromise on principles and dignity.

"It is a particular set of people with a particular set of vested interests that has started the rot," he observed, while pointing out how senior leaders who withstood so many storms from time to time and stood by the party are being forced to leave.

Amarinder Singh also condemned the malicious statements made by certain Congress leaders against Azad.

"Instead of levelling baseless charges against him, you should introspect as why this exodus is turning non-stop and terminal," he advised those trying to be "more loyal than the king".