'Entitled to make mistakes': Sam Pitroda contradicts Congress colleague Jairam Ramesh

Sam Pitroda

A day after being reinstated as the chief of the Indian Overseas Congress, Sam Pitroda on Thursday reacted to Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh's claim that the former assured the leadership that he would not leave any room for controversies, saying it was not the party's view.

Sam Pitroda, who was forced to resign on May 8 over the political storm triggered by a spate of controversial remarks amid the Lok Sabha elections, said what Jairam Ramesh said was "Jairam's" view, not the party's take on the matter.

Sam Pitroda, a close confidant of the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, said he is entitled to make mistakes.

“The Congress is not saying that. Jairam is saying that. What Jairam says is Jairam's view, it is not necessarily the party's view. It is okay for Jairam to say that and I respect it. I have to do what I have to do. In the process, I am entitled to make mistakes,” he told NDTV.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Sam Pitroda had triggered a massive political controversy with his remark on the United States' inheritance tax. The BJP latched on to Pitroda's remark, claiming the Congress wanted to snatch away the people's hard-earned wealth.

Pitroda told the channel that he wasn't proposing inheritance tax when he remarked.

He also explained his remark in which he had said those from the northeast appear like the Chinese.

"Next time I said something about – my way of saying how diverse we are, people thought it was racial," he said.

He said there was nothing racial in saying that "we came from Africa".

After Sam Pitroda's reinstatement, Jairam Ramesh said he was appointed on the assurance that he would not leave room for such controversies in the future.

"During the recent election campaign, Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent, he stepped down as Chairman of the Overseas Indian Congress. Subsequently, he clarified the context in which statements were made and how they were later distorted by the Modi campaign," Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

"The Congress President has reappointed him on the assurance that he will not in future leave room for such controversies to arise," he added.

The BJP sharply reacted to the Congress's move, saying removing Pitroda was a poll gimmick.

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