Karan Singh says his ties with Congress 'almost zero now'

Congress leader Karan Singh has hailed the Centre's decision to declare September 23, the birth anniversary of his late father Maharaja Hari Singh, a state holiday in J&K. He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the decision. Significantly, Singh also signaled strains in his ties with the Congress leadership, talked about neglect and said his relation with his party was "almost zero" now.

"I'm delighted. It happened after a lot of effort. I congratulate the young generation of Jammu that carried forward the efforts. They did it together; nobody opposed," Singh said in New Delhi on Friday about the J&K lieutenant governor declaring the new public holiday.

Singh indicated past dispensations had overlooked the demand. "When my sons Ajatshatru and Vikramaditya were members of the legislative council (representing the National Conference and Congress, respectively) they made the House pass a resolution about the holiday. However, nobody carried it forward. I'd like to thank PM Modi. I too had written to him for it."


On the status of his ties with the Congress leadership, Singh said, "I had joined Congress in 1967. But in the last 8-10 years, I'm no longer in Parliament. I was dropped from the Congress Working Committee. Yes, I'm in the Congress but there's no contact; nobody asks me anything. I do my own work. My relations with the party are almost zero now."