New Delhi: The Ram Setu affidavit controversy caused the UPA a lot of embarrassment at a time when it had been beleaguered by tough Left diktat over the Indo-US civil nuclear deal. But more than the affidavit itself, it's the ensuing public spat of UPA ministers which gave the party a far bigger headache.
At one point, the internal bickering within the party reached such proportions that the party high command had to personally tell the feuding Congressmen to shut up.
The party also issued an official statement, asking its leaders to refrain from airing their views in public. But, the feud among the party ranks is far from over.
Jairam Ramesh, the Union Minister of State for Commerce, who had first kicked off the row after he asked Union Culture Minister Ambika Soni to resign over the Ram Setu affidavit fiasco, has since fallen in line. He even apologised to Soni for demanding her resignation. But the internal wrangles have still refused to die down.
But senior Congress leader R K Dhawan, for one, has insisted that he was 'firm' in his statement that it would have been better if Soni had resigned on moral grounds. He suggested that there was no question of regretting his remarks as has been done by Ramesh.
Ramesh, meanwhile, seems to have ended up burning the bridge with Ambika Soni even though he personally rang up the beleaguered Culture Minister on Monday to say that he was "sorry and still remained her friend."
Ramesh's gesture was prompted by the party high command's displeasure over his remarks. In fact, the apology came just hours after the party chief strongly disapproved of the way he had gone public over the issue.
Party sources claim Ramesh — who was once a close associate of the Culture Minister, a former AICC General Secretary and Political Secretary to the Congress President — told a 'hurt' Soni to "let bygones, be bygones."
Yet, the matter appears far from closed. For Soni herself does not seem to be in a mood to forgive her Cabinet colleague so easily.
When asked about Ramesh's apology, the Union Minister reacted with a terse 'no comment' on Tuesday. Ramesh is, meanwhile, keeping away from the media.
On its part, the party sought to downplay the demand for the resignation of Soni. "It is but natural, the less different persons speak, the better," AICC Spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi told media persons without giving any answer to questions on whether the party contemplates any action against Soni for the affidavit fiasco or against Ramesh for his open criticism of his senior colleague.
"The Congress is a large democratic party. The views expressed are personal in nature. What you have heard is a spectrum of shades of personal views which is not surprising in the vibrancy of democratic culture of a democratic party," he said.
Pointing out that the government had acted swiftly by withdrawing the controversial portions of the affidavit on the Ram Setu issue, he said the "main issue stands settled."
"The stand of the government is clear and there is no scope for further speaking," he said, sending a clear message to the party leaders and ministers asking them to refrain from airing views in public.
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