The Congress leader further said, he had a discussion with Mr Nadda over the phone about attending the meeting.
New Delhi: Senior Congress leader and G 23 member Anand Sharma cleared the air surrounding his meeting with BJP National President JP Nadda on Thursday, saying if he had to, he would do so openly as they both are from Himachal Pradesh and studied at the same university.
Mr Sharma said he had “old social and family ties” with Mr Nadda and “I am proud that someone who comes from my state and university is president of the ruling party.” “Ideological differences do not mean personal enmity or apartheid… If I have to meet JP Nadda, I would do so openly. It is my right. I will not air speculation,” he said when asked about his reported meeting.
Mr Sharma, who is also a former Union minister, said the Himachal Pradesh University Alumni Association had invited him and Mr Nadda to felicitate them.
The Congress leader further said, he had a discussion with Mr Nadda over the phone about attending the meeting.
Mr Sharma is a prominent member of the G-23 grouping of Congress leaders who had sought organisational overhaul and been critical of some decisions of the party leadership.
What is G-23?
In August 2020, 23 senior Congress leaders wrote a letter to party president Sonia Gandhi requesting immediate and active leadership, and organisational rejig. In the letter, they sought an overhaul within the party given frequent failures at Lok Sabha and state elections. The leaders’ demand intensified over time and senior party leaders including Gulam Nabi Azad and Kabil Sibal continued to defy the party’s stand on several occasions.
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