New Delhi:
Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda met Rahul Gandhi today, a day after attending a meeting of the Congress “G-23” or rebel group. During their meeting, the veteran Congress leader explained the situation in Haryana to Mr Gandhi and discussed how the party should be strengthened in the state, sources say.
Mr Hooda is the first leader from the rebel group to meet with one of the three Gandhis after the meeting yesterday that focused on the perceived missteps of the Congress’s first family and its loyalists.
Party sources said that Rahul Gandhi agreed with the suggestions that had been put forward at the G-23 meet.
The Haryana veteran has been upset with his party for not giving him – or his son Deepinder Hooda – the post of state chief, sources say. Mr Hooda has been locked in a feud with Haryana Congress chief Selja Kumari, who is believed to be close to the Gandhis.
A group of 18 Congress leaders, a mix of G-23 dissidents and some newcomers, met last night and pitched for a “collective, inclusive leadership”.
Mr Hooda, a mass leader, was one of the newcomers who attended the meet. The 23 dissenters had written to Sonia Gandhi two years ago demanding big changes in the Congress, including a leadership overhaul.
