Congress leader Vinay Pradhan, who was recently suspended from the party for making derisive remarks about Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, resigned on Wednesday and said he will soon launch a campaign to make India “Pappu Mukt”, reported IANS.

On June 14, Pradhan had been suspended from the party for referring to Gandhi as “Pappu” in a WhatsApp message sent to local leaders. On being questioned by the party high command, Pradhan had said he used the word “Pappu” to highlight the achievements of the Congress vice-president, his straightforwardness and how he had been fighting for the cause of the poor and farmers.

“I was removed from all party posts without even hearing my side of the story. This is like following Pakistan’s anti-blasphemy law,” Pradhan said on Wednesday. “The party is being run by a small group of sycophants who surround Rahul Gandhi.”

He said many party members were sad at the decline of the Congress and will be joining him in the “Pappu-free” India campaign. He said the top leadership of the party were completely disconnected from ground realities. “And going by Pappu’s track record, there is no reason to believe that the party will win any election. Pappu will break his own record of losing more than 27 elections in a row,” he said.

Pradhan, who claimed to have given 22 years of his life to the Congress Party, blamed Rahul Gandhi and his “coterie of sycophants” for the Congress’ decline. Pradhan said Rahul Gandhi was himself fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of making India “Congress free”.

“Rahul Gandhi and the sycophants around him are already making some parties’ dream to make a ‘Congress-free’ India a reality. The person who cannot understand his praise is really a ‘Pappu’ (young boy) and I have no qualms in calling him that.”