We are sympathetic to the plight of Cong: Ex-Cong leader’s son on PM Modi-Azad bonhomie

Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad's son Saddam Nabi Azad said that they are sympathetic to the plight of Congress currently.

Speaking to ANI, Saddam Nabi Azad said,''We are sympathetic to the plight of Congress currently... Whatever position my father got in Congress is because of his work and abilities and not because of charity....''

Ahead of the release of his book 'Azaad -- an autobiography', former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Tuesday lavished praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi while launching an all out attack on the Congress party.

The Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chief said the Congress is still run by 'remote control' and alleged that a 'new coterie of inexperienced sycophants' manage its affairs.

At the same time, Azad, who was chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said he had great respect for Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Sanjay Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, but acknowledged there were political differences with Rahul Gandhi.

"...as an individual, I am not saying Rahul Gandhi is a bad person. As an individual he is a good person. Maybe we have some political issues but those are the political issues that I had with him as long as I was in the Congress. Since I am no longer in the Congress party, I am nobody to tell him what is right for him and what is wrong for him," the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chief said.

In his book, he has highlighted several instances where he had sharp differences with Rahul Gandhi, particularly after 23 Congress leaders in August 2020 had written to the then party president Sonia Gandhi.

Azad was part of a group of 23 Congress leaders who, in August 2020, wrote a letter to Sonia Gandhi seeking organisational reform in the party.

For the unversed, Saddam, a businessman and pursued his studies in England, is the eldest among the two siblings. His younger sister Sofiya Nabi Azad has studied journalism and there is a possibility that since she belongs to a political family, she may also join active politics in future.