Cong finds job for Jogi in N-E

Former Chhattisgarh chief minister Ajit Jogi, suspended from the Congress following charges of buying MLAs in the state after December polls...

Former Chhattisgarh chief minister Ajit Jogi, suspended from the Congress following charges of buying MLAs in the state after December polls, seems to have got himself a toe-hold in the party.

In exile for the last three months, Jogi was ‘‘allowed’’ to campaign in the North-East last night. Senior leaders explained it is a ‘‘test case’’ to prove his ‘‘sincerity as a Congressman’’. They clarify that any decision on his suspension from the party, whether or not to expel him, would come only after the LS polls. While the AICC said it had let Jogi campaign for the party in the N-E, he may not get to share the dais with Sonia Gandhi when she visits the states.

In Raipur, Jogi told his supporters that he was ‘‘more than happy’’ to get the work. ‘‘Tomorrow, I leave for Kolkata by train and then take my flight there. Now, I am not even insisting for the reinstatement. It’s upto the party to decide on this issue,’’ Jogi said, admitting that he erred in handing his letter of support to the ‘breakaway’ BJP group. ‘‘Yes, that was a terrible mistake… without obtaining the high command’s permission.’’

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He parried questions about the AICC disciplinary committee report favouring his reinstatement. ‘‘I can only tell you that I have been asked by AICC general secretary Oscar Fernandes to campaign in the N-E. Rest, you can ask the party,’’ he said.

‘‘I have told my supporters to work for the party and see that Congress sweeps the LS polls. I will be spending more time in the N-E, I will see that they work wholeheartedly,’’ he assured. On his return from a four-day Delhi visit, supporters surrounded Jogi in Raipur to celebrate the AICC move.

In a similar situation 17 years ago, Pranab Mukherjee was suspended from the party but was given responsibilities later on, which led to his re-entry into the Congress.