Udupi  : Rajya Sabha member Oscar Fernandes has said that the party constitution enables implementation of disciplinary measures against people who go against the dictum of the party high command.

Speaking to mediapersons here on Sunday, the senior Congress leader said that the official candidate announced by the party is the party member and whoever goes against it is no longer considered as a party member. The district Congress committee is working on the necessary measures that would be taken and would consult State committee for the final action to be taken against the rebels.

He said the Parliamentary sessions are going on uninterrupted and the public are under misconceptions that the Parliamentary sessions are affected owing to the National Herald issue. The sessions in both the houses are not affected, Fernandes asserted.

Stating that he is proud of being the trustee for the National Herald, the paper that was brought out to strengthen the fight against British in the pre-Independence era, the Parliamentarian said that the paper was introduced by Jawaharlal Nehru as a form of agitation and patriotic struggle against the British.

Every Indian is proud to be associated with the paper, said Fernandes. He said the senior officer who legally favoured the issue concerning National Herald was immediately transferred.

He, however, alleged that the Union government is working against Congress party. He lamented that the public has given majority mandate and BJP has failed to keep up to the expectations of the voters who brought them to the power.

“The BJP is into mean politics and is least concerned about the development aspects. The unemployed should be provided jobs, the starved should be offered food and education facilities should be offered to the illiterate. Instead the government is wasting time on unnecessary issues,” he accused.
Sorakespeak

Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake concurred that the State Congress would take disciplinary measures against party members who are contesting as independent candidates in the forthcoming MLC polls.

Speaking to mediapersons, the minister added that there is nothing wrong in aspiring and also contesting. “There are, however, limitations to doing so. The chief minister and the KPCC president both are of the opinion that the rebels, Jayaprakash Hedge and Harikrishna Bantwal, have involved in unnecessary controversy. There was no need to go for the extreme measure of contesting independently as rebels,” he insisted.

“The decision to field Prathapchandra Shetty was taken after consulting the block-level workers in the party and the decision was forwarded to the high command by Oscar Fernandez. The campaign is taken up in all the areas and would be intensified in the days to come,” he added.

He said the voters should not be misguided, as this would affect the forthcoming taluk panchayat and zilla panchayat elections, he added. He assured that the development initiatives would be introduced in both Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts after the polls in consultation with the chief minister.