The Congress’s internal politics continued to make news with a suspended spokesperson saying on Monday that 100 leaders had written to party chief Sonia Gandhi demanding leadership change.

The party, in a quick retort dismissed it as a work of the ‘Special Misinformation Group’ led by Sanjay Jha, who was suspended from the Congress in June this year after he wrote a column critical of the party leadership, tweeted this morning, “It is estimated that around 100 Congress leaders (including MP’s) , distressed at the state of affairs within the party, have written a letter to Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Congress President, asking for change in political leadership and transparent elections in CWC.”

The tweet by Jha, whose Twitter bio reads ‘Congressi by DNA. Sacked & Suspended by Congress for wanting internal democracy’, drew immediate response from the Congress.

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Randeep Singh Surjewala, Congress’ spokesperson, called it a tactic to divert attention from the reports suggesting that Facebook ignored applying its hate speech rules to politicians of the ruling party in India.

“Special Misinformation Group on Media-TV Debate Guidance” in its what’sapp of today directed to run the story of a non existant letter of Congress leaders to divert attention from Facebook-BJP links. Of course, BJP stooges have started acting upon it,” Surjewala tweeted.

Vehement denial notwithstanding, Congress’s internal rumblings have been in news past few months with the Rajasthan rebellion saga just settling down. Earlier, the party’s Rajya Sabha MPs’ meeting saw the much-talked about junior versus senior tension manifesting itself in a virtual meeting.

The Congress’s Rajya Sabha lawmaker from Maharashtra Rajiv Satav, seen as a Rahul camper said, “the stint of that government (UPA II) ruined the Congress and so the accountability for the party’s crisis must be fixed from that time”, according to sources.

This was said in the presence of all those who helmed the UPA II, including then PM Manmohan Singh, P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal, AK Antony. In another sign of differences within the party, only seven of the 40 MPs present demanded that Rahul Gandhi, who has become politically active in the recent months after lying low for almost a year, should be back as the party president.

Another flashpoint for the party is in Punjab where Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, 78, has recently come under sustained fire from his known detractors — MPs Pratap Singh Bajwa and Shamsher Singh Dulloo. The state party chief Sunil Jakhar even shot off a letter to Sonia Gandhi recommending their removal.

Minor fires are also burning in Maharashtra, where party chief Eknath Gaikwad has recommended the expulsion of former state party president Sanjay Nirupam over anti-party activities. Reports of discontent are also coming in from Jharkhand where more than half of the 15 Congress MLAs are said to be unhappy. The Congress is part of the ruling coalition led by Hemant Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).