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Uttar Pradesh: Congress State Vice President Lalitesh Pati Tripathi Quits Party, Ends Family's 100-Year Relationship With INC
Swarajya Staff
Sep 24, 2021, 03:48 PM | Updated 03:48 PM IST
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After several speculations surrounding the exit of Congress leader and former MLA Lalitesh Pati Tripathi came up, he ended the relationship with the party in Uttar Pradesh. Lalitesh is the great-grandson of former Congress president, Kamalapati Tripathi.
The relationship of his family with the Congress goes back more than a 100 years. He comes from a family from Purvanchal (eastern UP). Tripathi was known to be a close aide of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi. He has resigned from the primary membership of the Congress.
He announced his resignation at a press conference in Varanasi. He has previously represented the Marihan assembly seat in Purvanchal's Mirzapur district. Currently, the assembly seat is with the Bharatiya Janata Party. His exit from the Congress comes ahead of the 2022 assembly election. This is the second big exit from the Congress. Earlier this year Jitin Prasada resigned from the party and joined the BJP.
Tripathi was the state vice president of the Congress.
Prasada, too, came from a family that was known for its contribution to the Congress and its prospects and journey in Purvanchal. Prior to his resignation, speculations in sections of the media were made on Tripathi joining the Samajwadi Party. He has reportedly denied it.
There is a change in thinking of every party with times, the change that I see in Congress party today, after that, I felt that it’s irrelevant for me to stay in the party. I have not thought or discussed going to any other party at the moment. I will first discuss with my family and workers before deciding a future course of action. At the moment I have not decided anything. If my well-wishers want me not to contest the elections then I am ready to do that. The respect for Rahul Gandhi Ji and Priyanka Ji will always be there. In future, the Congress will be an option for the people of India, but I am leaving the party for my workers.
Tripathi's exit from the Congress is also being looked at as a Brahmin leader leaving the party al though he has not won a poll since 2017 (lost the assembly poll in 2017 and lost two Lok Sabha polls from the Mirzapur constituency).
He could be looking out for better prospects, says a report in the Pioneer adding that Brahmin leaders in Samajwadi Party are resisting the entry of Tripathi. His next move is expected towards making his position firm in the assembly constituency in Mirzapur.
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