Kapil Sibal said he had resigned from the Congress on May 16 and is now an independent candidate.
While initial reports suggested that he would file for a Rajya Sabha nomination with support from the Samajwadi Party, Mr. Sibal has clarified that he has not joined the Samajwadi Party.
The former MHRD minister said he had resigned from the Congress on May 16 and is an independent voice.
Both Akhilesh Yadav and Kapil Sibal indicated that Sibal has not joined the Samajwadi Party. ‘I have filed nomination as an Independent candidate. I have always wanted to be an independent voice in the country,’ Sibal said.
He added, ‘On May 16, I resigned from the Congress Party.’
‘Kapil Sibal has just filed his nomination for Rajya Sabha with Samajwadi Party support. He is an eminent lawyer and has a political career. He had effectively put and discussed important issues in Lok Sabha, and Rajya Sabha. The country has many issues facing it and I hope that he will effectively put issues in the Rajya Sabha,’ SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said.
I was a Congress leader. But not anymore. I had resigned from Congress on May 16. I am thankful to Akhilesh Yadav ji…We, many people, are coming together for 2024. We will expose the shortcomings of the central government ahead of 2024. All will put our views before the public,’ Kapil Sibal said after filing the nomination.
Kapil Sibal had criticized the party high command during the leadership crisis in Punjab. ‘We are G-23, definitely not Ji Huzoor-23. We will keep raising issues,’ Sibal had then remarked about the G-23, the group of 23 Congress who pitched for reforms. After he made this remark, youth Congress workers had protested outside his house.
The rift between Sibal and the Congress High Command became apparent on several occasions after this skirmish, as many felt Sibal implied that there needed to be fresh leadership in the nation’s oldest party.