Congress leader Ajay Maken on Thursday said that his party is the only one in the country that holds an election for the post of its president, PTI reported.

The party will hold elections to pick its next president on October 17.

“Everyone should be satisfied as there are no elections in any political party,” Maken said. “Has anyone heard about the election of JP Nadda in the BJP? Has anyone heard about the election of Amit Shah?”

Nadda is the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, while Shah was his predecessor.

Maken made the remarks while responding to a question regarding objections being raised by some Congress leaders on the fairness of the exercise of electing the next party chief.

Several Congress leaders such as Shashi Tharoor, Pradyut Bordoloi, Manish Tewari and Karti Chidambaram have urged the Congress party to make public the electoral rolls for the upcoming elections, according to The Indian Express. Tharoor is reportedly considering to contest the elections.

“How can someone consider running if he or she does not know who the electors are,” Tewari had said on Wednesday. “If someone has to file the nomination and get it proposed by 10 Congresspersons, as is the requirement, the CEA [Central Election Authority] can reject it saying they are not valid electors.”

Backing Tewari’s argument, Tharoor had said it was important for the party to ensure transparency on electoral rolls, according to The Indian Express.

“If that’s what Manish has asked for, I am sure it’s a principle that everybody would agree with,” Tharoor added. “Everybody should know who can nominate and who can vote. There is nothing wrong with that.”

Bhupinder Hooda meets Ghulam Nabi Azad

Meanwhile, former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Thursday said that he along with two other members of the group of 23 had met Ghulam Nabi Azad soon after he had quit the Congress, the Hindustan Times reported.

The G-23 is reportedly a dissident group in the Congress. It has been pushing for collective and inclusive leadership in the party since August 2020. Its members even wrote a letter to interim chief Sonia Gandhi to press for sweeping changes in the party.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, a veteran leader and former Union minister who resigned from the Congress on August 26, was part of the G-23. In his resignation letter, Azad had accused MP Rahul Gandhi of being immature and described the election process of the Congress as a farce and an attempt to foist a “non-serious individual” to be at the helm.

Several Congress leaders have resigned from the party in support of Azad.

On Thursday, Hooda said that he along with Anand Sharma and Prithviraj Chavan told Azad to avoid saying things that may lead to bitterness among the members of the Congress.

“We had raised a demand for holding the organisational polls, which are now being held,” Hooda added. “Despite that Azad Sahab decided to quit the party, but he had never discussed his resignation with us. We only asked him as to what happened that he had to take such a decision even after the demands were accepted.”