Sulking Mankotia to stay away from Rahul’s Himachal rally

Disgruntled over not being invited for All-India Congress Committee (AICC) vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s meeting with ex-servicemen, scheduled to be held at Tanda in Kangra on Thursday, former Congress minister Major Vijai Singh Mankotia has decided not to attend the meeting or leader’s rally on the same day.

Disgruntled over not being invited for All-India Congress Committee (AICC) vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s meeting with ex-servicemen, scheduled to be held at Tanda in Kangra on Thursday, former Congress minister Major Vijai Singh Mankotia has decided not to attend the meeting or leader’s rally on the same day.


Sources in the Congress party said efforts made by the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee through backdoor channels to persuade Mankota did not yield results, as he refused to budge.

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Mankotia’s close aide said he left for Jammu on Wednesday for some “personal” work. On Tuesday, Mankotia had alleged that he was being “constantly ignored and humiliated” by the party and was not invited for Rahul’s rally or his scheduled meeting with ex-servicemen.

However, HPCC chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu claimed that invitations for the rally were sent to all leaders, including Mankotia. “As far as the meeting of ex-armymen is concerned, it is not a political event. No political leader from the state will address the soldiers.It’s an open house and anybody among the ex- servicemen could interact with AICC vice-president,” said Sukhu.

Mankotia has shared bitter relations with chief minister Virbhadra Singh in the past, and had resigned from his government in 2006, besides releasing a controversial compact disc against him. He returned to the party fold during the 2012 assembly elections and contested from Shahpur constituency. After he lost the polls, he demanded an important post in the government. Mankotia was feeling “ignored” for the past few months as he was not invited to important party functions.