JALANDHAR: Even as the Congress high command is trying to resolve the dissidence in the party, and its government in Punjab, the simmering dissent in the party youth wing came to surface “July 1st, against the leadership of Indian Youth Congress president Maninderjit Singh Bitta with several youth leaders demanding his removal and a CBI probe into the assets acquired by him. Addressing a press conference here, two former general secretaries and a$ many joint secretaries of the Punjab Youth Congress appealed to AICC president Narasimha Rao to remove Bitta as he was above 40 years of age as against the prescribed limit of 35 years for an office-bearer of the Youth Congress. They hailed Rao’s stand on the issue of age limit during the National Youth Convention held at Delhi on June 28, coinciding with his birthday. Devinder Singh Baboo, Pawan Dewan, Manmohan Singh Raju and Vipin Sharma said a deputauon of the Punjab Youth Congress would soon meet Prime Minister Deve Gowda and Union Home Minister Indrajit Gupta to demand a CBI probe into real estate, petrol pumps and gas agencies allegedly acquired by Bitta. The anti Bitta leaders said a June 23 write-up on Bitla in a Delhi newspaper, photocopies of which were circulated at the conference, would form the basis of the memorandum to be submitted (o the Prime Minister and the Home Minister to press their demand for a CBI inquiry.

They said they would also submit a memorandum to the AICC president, demanding the removal of Bitla and appointment of an able person who could provide leadership to the Youth Congress and help rebuild the organization to strengthen the parent party as well. This, they added, had become vital at this critical juncture because the Youth Congress under the leadership of Bitta has been going downhill ever since he took charge of the organization in late 1993. They attributed the Congress’ poor performance in Punjab in the recent Lok Sabha elections to Bitta because the youth under his leadership had lost contact with the grassroots as was reportedly mentioned in the meeting of the Congress Working Committee meeting held in Delhi to review the postelection scenario.

They alleged that Bitta had auctioned the party posts and created several cells in spite of the directive against doing so issued by AICC general secretary (in charge of youth affairs) Ahmed Patel. Dubbing Bitta a sycophant without principles, the youth leaders took strong exception to his criticism of CWC member Rajesh Pilot, adding that the same Bitta climbed up the political ladder with the support of Pilot, who granted several outturn telephone connections and membership of telephone advisory committee 10 his favorites when Pilot was the Communication Minister. They said Bitta was now alleging that Pilot had become a CWC member by bribing AICC members with outturn telephone connections.

Article extracted from this publication >>  July 3, 1996