Odisha’s Expelled Cong Leader Manas Choudhury Accuses OPCC President Of Taking Money For Party Tickets

Bhubaneswar: Manas Choudhury, who was expelled from the Congress on Saturday, accused OPCC president Sarat Patnaik and Odisha in-charge Ajoy Kumar of taking money for distributing party tickets for the recently concluded elections.

Speaking to media persons following his expulsion, Choudhury said the party did not give him the expulsion letter directly. “I came to know about my expulsion from the social media and my associates. On Friday, OPCC president Sarat Patnaik called me to his office and handed over the letter,” he said.

Questioning why the letter issued by Patnaik has the date of June 2, Choudhury claimed that OPCC cannot expel him as he was a member of the All India Congress Committee (AICC). “Only the Congress president or AICC has the power to expel me from the party,” he added.

Choudhury, wo was also president of Cuttack District Congress Committee, strongly refuted the allegation of anti-party activities made against him by the party for expelling him. “While the expulsion letter was issued on June 2, I had mailed a letter to Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge a day before. I had mentioned in the letter that OPCC president and state in-charge were responsible for the poor performance of the party in the elections,” he said.

Stating that he was being victimised for speaking on the corrupt practices of the state leadership, he said would continue to expose the leaders who would harm the party as he was a dedicated leader of the Congress. “The OPCC president and Ajoy Kumar pocketed the entire money sent by the party to state candidates. Besides, they distributed the tickets to the candidates who made the highest bidding,” he alleged.

Holding the two leaders responsible for the party’s debacle in Odisha, Choudhury said, “I will continue to expose the leaders who have been working against the interest of the Congress. I am a committed member of the party. I have been serving the Congress throughout my political career. Nobody can drive me out of it.”