New Delhi, Nov 4: Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh today fired a fresh salvo at Team Anna saying Hazare is losing his credibility with his conflicting utterances on the Lokpal issue and claimed Hazare's campaign against Congress in Uttar Pradesh will have “zero” impact.
“Anna is losing his credibility gradually by making such statements. One day he says that defeat Congress. The second day he says I am not against any party but against corrupt candidate. Next days he says, I am going to campaign against the Congress party. He should make up his mind first and think before he says something,” Singh told reporters here.
He was reacting to Hazare's declaration today that he will campaign against Congress in five states where Assembly elections are due next year if the UPA government fails to get the Jan Lokpal Bill passed in the Winter Session of Parliament.
“It will have zero impact in UP,” said Singh when asked how much Team Anna's campaign can affect Congress in UP.
He said that Hazare should sit back silently and wait till the Winter session, when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, himself, had assured him to bring the bill in this session.
Singh also took a jibe at Arvind Kejriwal over his letter to the Prime Minister on returning his service dues and said the activist's efforts to seek “martyrdom” will not succeed.
“Kejriwal is presenting this matter in a way that injustice was meted out to him. He filled up the bond form, it was he, who did not fulfill its conditions....There is no question of any martyrdom in this, which he is unnecessarilty trying to create around. This halo will not last,” Singh said.
Singh said that it was “unbecoming” of an IRS officer to write directly to the Prime Minister.
At the AICC briefing, party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi, was, however, guarded in his response on Anna's statements refraining from remarking on “stray and casual” comments.
“If everybody maintains disclipline and remains within his or her limits, then a concrete positive result would come out. There is no point in commenting on remarks being made everyday. I do not want to comment on every casual and stray comment. It is not going to help the matter.” Singhvi, who also heads the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Lokpal, said that very detailed constructive exchange of views have happened in talks with Team Anna in their meetings adding “there are disagreements but I think that is not bad.”
Asked about Hazare changing stand on the issue of campaigning against Congress in elections, Singhvi said if they are doing so the questions should be directed to them.
“When he had broken his fast on the assurance that the bill will be brought in the Winter session, what is the point in making statements everyday on the issue in October?” he asked.
