NEW DELHI — After Congress MP Digvijaya Singh’s ‘praise’ for the BJP-RSS, a fellow party leader Udit Raj, admitted on record that the grand old party is grappling with serious organisational weaknesses and widespread factionalism.
Udit Raj reacted after Digvijaya Singh triggered political row by sharing a 1996 photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with senior BJP leader L.K. Advani, while praising the BJP and the RSS for nurturing grassroots workers and elevating them to positions such as Chief Minister and Prime Minister, in an apparent reference to PM Modi’s political rise.
Udit Raj told IANS, “There is definitely organisational weakness. Is there any doubt about that? For 10 years, we couldn’t even appoint district presidents. Whenever someone was appointed, another group would block it. Factionalism is rampant.”
Drawing a contrast with the BJP, Raj said that introspection and internal debate are part of the Congress culture.
“Discussion is part of Congress tradition; we don’t run a dictatorship like the BJP. It is in our tradition to introspect. If there were no organisational weaknesses, would we keep losing elections repeatedly? The positive thing is that we are working to overcome our shortcomings. There is nothing wrong with it,” he added.
On December 27, Digvijaya Singh had taken to X, tagging members of the Gandhi family and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, to share the photograph that sparked the debate.
In his post, he wrote, “I found this picture on the Quora site. It is very impactful. In the way the grassroots swayamsevaks (workers) of RSS and the workers of Jan Sangh @BJP4India sit on the floor at the feet of leaders and become the Chief Minister of the state and the Prime Minister of the country. This is the power of the organisation. Jai Siya Ram.”
The post quickly went viral in political circles and coincided with a meeting of the Congress Working Committee in Delhi, leading to speculation that the veteran leader was attempting to convey a message to the party’s top leadership.
Subsequently, Digvijaya Singh sought to clarify his remarks, stating that his comments had been misinterpreted.
“I am a supporter of the organisation, but an opponent of the RSS and Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi. I have only praised the organisational strength of the RSS. I have always opposed the policies of the BJP and the RSS,” he told media persons.
Meanwhile, reacting sharply to the Supreme Court hearing over the suspension of the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the Unnao rape case, Udit Raj said the matter once again exposed how powerful individuals were shielded despite the gravity of the crime, and stressed that the victim must get justice.
Emphasising the seriousness of the offence, Raj said public pressure and social media outrage played a key role in forcing the government to act. — With inputs from IANS
