Expelled PCC member,supporters stage dharna during Rahul visit

Amethi, Sep1 (PTI) An expelled Congress member and hissupporters staged a dharna during Rahul Gandhi’s visit herethis morning demanding the removal of party president SoniaGandhi’s representative K L Sharma. Protesters, led by Rajesh Pandey, blocked the Munshiganjcrossing when local MP and Congress Vice President RahulGandhi was meeting people from his constituency at theMunshiganj guest house. According to Congress sources, Pandey and his supporterstried to march into the guest house to meet Rahul and demandSharma’s removal, but the police chased them away. Pandey alleged that Sharma has been indulging in wrongpractices in the Congress president’s Lok Sabha constituency,Rae Bareli, and has sought a CBI probe. He claimed he had apprised Rahul of Sharma’s actionsseveral times but it was to no avail. After his deeds surfaced in the media he (Sharma)conspired to get me expelled by framing fake charges, healleged. Pandey also alleged Sharma was interfering in hispersonal life. Rahul, who arrived here last night, met Congress workersand locals at the Munshiganj guest house today. Last night he had met Congress leaders and probablecandidates for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls due early nextyear. Meanwhile, Sharma refuted the charges, saying Pandey hasbeen doing this for long now out of personal enmity with him. "He has written to Modi, Rajnath Singh and Governorclaiming I have relations with mafias and I have black moneyand other such allegations. I said let the inquiry beinstituted and things will become clear," he told PTI. "I had got his (Pandey’s) daughter admitted in a privatemedical college two years ago but he wanted her fees also tobe waived, which the institute did not do. He is angry with mebecause I couldn’t get her fee waived," Sharma said. Pandey was expelled from the Congress after he continuedposting objectionable content on social media against theparty high command, he said. "Let him demand anything… I have been with this(Gandhi) family for 33 years now. Had there been anythingwrong on my part, I would have been removed already," he said.PTI COR/KIS SAB SMI ANB RT SKNSD