No brain drain in Congress, young will be given a chance

New Delhi, Mar 14: Days after Jyotiraditya Scindia's shocking move to the BJP, the Congress asserted that no "brain drain" was happening in the party and said young leaders would be attended to and given responsible positions going forward.

Dismissing suggestions that there could be more leaders who may quit the party after Scindia, the Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said there comes a time in life when one has to choose an ideology over the allure of a post that one may get in an ideology which one may have no faith in.

"I do not think that there is any brain drain happening in the Congress party as Rahul Gandhi himself answered vis-a- vis Jyotiraditya Scindia yesterday," Surjewala said at a party press conference.

"Even if a person leaves the Congress party, we are all deeply hurt. However, Jyotiraditya ji or any other person needs to think whether their core ideology is far more important than the temporary allure of a post and a position in power," he said.

The Congress leader said the day people in the party start making a clear distinction between ideology and the lure of a post, then everything will fall in place.

Asked about a possible 'brain drain' in the party Surjewala said, "The younger lot or the younger leaders whom you are referring to have more than adequate place in the party. They will be attended to and given responsible positions. Some of them have already been given so during Rajya Sabha elections."

More and more people from across the spectrum of the party coming from grass roots will be accommodated in prominent leadership positions, he said.

"So, I do not agree with the perception or the question that there is going to be any brain drain," Surjewala asserted.

The Congress has opted for young faces as candidates for the Rajya Sabha polls with Deepender Hooda, the son of former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Rajeev Satav, Shahzada Anwar, Kennedy Cornelius Khyriem and Phulo Devi Netam among the 13 names announced by the party.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said Scindia ignored his ideology and decided to go with the RSS as he feared for his political future. Gandhi had asserted that "his old friend" will neither get respect in the BJP, nor will he be satisfied.

Rahul Gandhi also recalled his long association with Scindia and said there was a difference between what was in his heart and what he was saying.

While some senior leaders like Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot have been scathing in their criticism of Scindia, Gandhi's response to the scion of the erstwhile Gwalior royal family quitting the Congress was tempered.