Sanjay Nirupam offers to quit over Cong's poor show in BMC poll

Congress leader said he tried his best for the party in 2 years of his tenure as city unit chief

Taking moral responsibility for Congress' poor performance in the BMC polls, party's city unit chief Sanjay Nirupam on Thursday offered to resign from his post.

Talking to reporters, Nirupam launched a broadside against party leaders in the city who, he said, wished that the Congress lose the elections.

"In their aim to defeat me, they caused immense harm to the party," he said in an apparent reference to AICC general secretary Gurudas Kamat.

Nirupam said he has spoken to the party's central leadership and offered to resign for the poor show in the civic polls.

The Congress leader said he tried his best for the party in the two years of his tenure as city unit chief.

"I admit there were lack of resources in the last two years. One person cannot ensure the party's success. There was immense negativity spread by certain party leaders to harm the campaign," Nirupam charged.

"If I was wrong, these leaders could have discussed the issues with me across the table instead of going to the media and taking to twitter and targeting the party leaders. Most of the recommendations for candidates from party leaders were accommodated. I intervened only in about four to five per cent in the candidates' list," he said.

Nirupam said the central leadership deputed an AICC observer, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, to resolve the differences.

"But, the leaders who were targeting me refused to meet him also," he said.

He rued that whenever civic polls are around, some leaders present a picture of disharmony in the city unit.

"I am the city president for the last two years, but the same situation was seen during Murli Deora's time and Kripashankar Singh's time. Is everyone wrong and only person right," Nirupam asked without naming Kamat, who also served as the city unit chief.

"Some leaders think they are above the party. If disciplinary action is not taken against them, the Congress will suffer," he warned.

Meanwhile, senior party leader Narayan Rane blamed Nirupam for the poor performance of the Congress in the BMC polls and said he had not fought the elections to win.

When asked about it, Nirupam said why Rane did not campaign even for the candidates recommended by the latter.

The latest trends show the Congress leading in only 22 out of the 227 seats it contested.

The infighting in the Mumbai Congress saw the party plummeting to its worst performance.

In 2012 BMC polls, the Congress had won 52 seats and in 2007, it had emerged victorious on 75 seats in the Mumbai civic body.