Mumbai: After the split in Shiv Sena and the NCP, all is not well in Maharashtra state Congress also. Factionalism within the party has started coming to fore as meetings for election-preparedness have started. After differences over district party chief in Solapur and Pune MLA Ravindra Dhangekar had to skip a party meeting after his image was missing from the banners put out by the city party unit, the factionalism within the party led to fighting among party workers at Nagpur on Thursday. Two groups clashed on the stage over who should speak at a meeting so much so that the meeting had to be stalled.
The fight started as Nagpur Congress president Vikas Thackeray and party leader Narendra Jichkar jostled for the mic. Both the leaders wanted to address the crowd. During the event, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole, leader of the opposition in the Legislative Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar and former MP Vilas Muttemwar were present on the stage.
Sources said that some Congress leaders and workers were also angry over Wadettiwar's recent remarks against Rahul Gandhi. The groups started arguing as soon as he got on the stage. The fight continued for nearly half an hour despite Patole's calls to maintain calm.
Sources say that the fight was between two warring factions of the Nagpur Congress. While one backs Muttemwar, the other backs former ministers Nitin Raut and Satish Chaturvedi.
Inter-Party Clash Over Hamas Attack On Israel
Earlier this week, there were reports of a rift within the party during the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting over a statement to condemn the Hamas attack on Israel.
The war between Israel and Hamas spawned a political row in India after the Congress released a statement expressing the party's “long-standing support for the rights of the Palestinian people”.
Sources said the Congress' statement highlights divisions within the party, and that the section on the Israel-Hamas war had not been well-received by all those at the CWC meeting.
The BJP, which has set out its stall in support of Israel, hit out at the communique and accused the opposition party of supporting terrorism and being a “hostage to minority vote bank politics”.
