Congress gags top leaders after Digvijaya gets candid

New Delhi: The Congress party has issued a circular asking its top brass not to speak out of turn. The 'diktat' comes after the party General Secretary Digvijaya Singh recently slammed Home Minister P Chidambaram in an interview to NDTV.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Janardhan Dwivedi has formally written to all AICC office bearers and Congress Working Committee (CWC) members saying that they should express their views publically or interact with the media whenever necessary only on areas of their responsibility. He has also asked them to ensure the norm is observed at every level of the party.

Recently in an interview to NDTV, Digvijaya Singh had said he had no regrets for going public with his criticism of Home Minister P Chidambaram on the Naxal issue. (Digvijaya to NDTV: No regrets for comments on Chidambaram)

In a column in the Economic times, Digvijaya Singh had accused Chidambaram of being intellectually arrogant and adopting a counterproductive policy. Speaking exclusively to NDTV, Digvijaya Singh said he stands by all the comments he made, and feels no need to retract them.

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The party has reaffirmed that what Digvijaya said did not contradict its philosophy. But Sonia Gandhi, realising that many ministers and partymen are speaking out of turn, has reasserted to ensure discipline in the rank and file of the party.