When SM Krishna abandoned Congress after 46 years, said party had no future

At 84, veteran Congressman SM Krishna faced a day unlike any other. It was the winter of 2017 and after 46 years with the Congress, he announced that he was severing ties with the party he had devoted his life to. It must have been a very tough decision to make, but Krishna was a man of self-respect and dignity who once served as Karnataka’s Chief Minister and India’s Foreign Minister. Known as the ‘Architect of Brand Bengaluru’, the visionary behind India’s IT capital, left the Congress quietly, consulting no one but his wife. Seven years later, the leader who reshaped Karnataka and helped grow India’s global footprint passed away in the early hours of Tuesday. He was 92.

“I have taken the decision, however painful, I am going out of the house with which I have been so familiar, including its doors and windows,” lamented Krishna in March 2017.

SM Krishna’s move was driven by a combination of factors, including the future of the party drifting and him being “sidelined” due to his age. The veteran politician was ready with his diagnosis for the party, but there was no one to hear him out.

Mindful of his “self-respect and dignity”, SM Krishna did what he had to do — he moved on.

“I have resigned from Congress to protect my self-respect and dignity after serving it for 46 years, as the high command has sidelined me because of my age,” an emotional 84-year-old Krishna told reporters.

“I did not consult anyone about leaving the party. And except my wife, I did not tell anyone that I was resigning from the party, though it is a painful moment in my life,” he added in the 2017 press conference he had called with a heavy heart.

WHY SM KRISHNA LEFT CONGRESS, SAID PARTY HAD NO FUTURE

A day after SM Krishna resigned from the Congress, he lashed out at the party saying it didn’t need mass leaders, but wanted only managers.

“The Congress doesn’t need mass leaders these days, they only want managers who can handle a situation,” he said.

“I am not retiring from politics though I have quit Congress, as its future is not bright. Disillusionment with the party started from 2012 onwards. There is a way of getting rid of political leaders. The party should learn the art of being graceful. They (party leaders) could have told me I was not required. It would have been a graceful exit,” added Krishna. “I toured the state during the last elections and nobody thought I was old. Suddenly, they have discovered that I am old and need rest. I felt the Congress did not need me”.

The seeds of Krishna’s departure from the Congress were sown in 2012 when he was forced to resign as the External Affairs Minister in Manmohan Singh’s UPA II Cabinet.

WHEN KRISHNA READ OUT PORTUGUESE MINISTER’S SPEECH AT UN

The removal came just after his gaffe at the United Nations in 2011, where Krishna read out the statement of the Portuguese Foreign Minister instead of his own. The incident drew criticism and embarrassment for the Indian delegation at a time when India was vying for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

Venkaiah Naidu, then a BJP leader, said that Krishna brought “shame” to India, and he had no “moral right” to continue.

Ajay Maken, then a Congress spokesperson, didn’t forget to refer to the faux pas at UN when Krishna quit the Congress in 2017.

Maken, however, didn’t forget to acknowledge Krishna’s contributions to the party.

After he resigned from the Centre, he had hoped that he would be actively included in Karnataka politics, but that did not shape up as he liked.

SM KRISHNA JOINED BJP MONTHS AFTER EXITING CONGRESS

SM Krishna, who passed away on Tuesday, at the age of 92, had a distinguished career that spanned over six decades. He was first elected to the legislative assembly in 1962 and later made his parliamentary debut in 1968. Krishna held various key positions, including Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1999 to 2004, Governor of Maharashtra from 2004, and External Affairs Minister in the UPA government from 2009 to 2012 under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Months after his resignation from the Congress, Krishna joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2017.

In the end, SM Krishna, who shaped Karnataka’s and Bengaluru’s future, chose to shape his own, leaving behind both parties and regrets.