A few days before he was expelled from the Congress, Acharya Pramod Krishnam told this reporter: “Politics is a game of possibilities. As of now, neither have I left the Congress nor has the Congress left me.” After his expulsion on February 2, he thanked the Congress leadership for freeing him and providing him the opportunity to explore all possibilities in politics.

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Krishnam was reportedly a member of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s advisory group till she was the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary (in charge of Uttar Pradesh). Krishnam did not have an official position in the party and he was not given any official party work. Though an excellent orator, he was never considered a political force.

His expulsion comes days after he met UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath to invite him to the Kalki Dham Foundation laying programme. Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with CM Adityanath will lay the foundation stone of Kalki Dham at Ainchora Kamboh in Sambhal district of Uttar Pradesh on February 19. Krishnam, who is the chief priest of Kalki Dham, has remained associated with the Kalki Dham project for over 15 years.

He has been associated with the Congress for even longer. Krishnam joined the Congress in the 1980s after meeting Rajiv Gandhi, the then PM. He also worked with the youth Congress but it was only in 2014 that he stood for an election from Sambhal. In 2019, the party made him a candidate against defence minister Rajnath Singh in the Lucknow Lok Sabha seat. He lost both times. His oratory skills and consistent participation in television debates as a Congress leader made him a well-known face of the party.

“I had made a promise to Rajiv Gandhi that I would not leave the Congress till my last breath,” he said. “I am satisfied because I have not broken my promise made to Rajiv Gandhi.”

There is nothing to suggest that he worked closely with Rajiv Gandhi.

Those aware of recent developments said Krishnam, who initially countered the Bharatiya Janata Party on various issues, sometimes had diametrically opposite views to the Congress’ official position often causing embarrassment to the party, such as on the abrogation of Article 370 and the triple talaq law —- Krisham also admits that he did not like the stance that Udaynidhi Stalin of Tamil Nadu’s ruling party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, took on sanatana dharma.

More recently, Krishnam attended the January 22 consecration ceremony at the new Ram temple in Ayodhya.

“Hon’ble Congress president has approved Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee’s proposal to expel Pramod Krishnam from the party for six years in view of his repeated anti-party statements and complaints of indiscipline,” a press statement issued by All India Congress Committee general secretary KC Venugopal read.

Krishnam is now using this letter to question the Congress leaders.

“I want to know from Kharge ji (Mallikarjuna Kharge, party president) and Venugopal ji (KC Venugopal) which anti-party activities they are talking about, and when did they come to know about them… Is remembering the name of Lord Ram a crime? Is going to Ayodhya a crime? Is accepting an invitation to the consecration ceremony a crime? Is it a crime to get the foundation of Kalki Dham laid? Is it a crime to meet the PM? Is it a crime to invite UP CM to the Kalki Dham Foundation programme? I have these questions and they should clarify what anti-party activity is,” Krishnam said.

“I was humiliated. But I did not leave the Congress,” he said.

Krishnam said that senior leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad (who eventually left the Congress to form the Democratic Progressive Azad Party), Kamal Nath, Bhupendra Hooda, Digvijay Singh and Anand Sharma, have not got due respect in the grand old party. “I cannot make any compromise on Ram and Rashtra,” he said, using a shorthand of the saffron party’s core concerns.

Krishnam indicated that his war with the Congress would go on. “Lord Ram was sent to exile for 14 years. Now, a Ram bhakt has been expelled for six years. I request the party to expel me for 14 years,” he said.

However, there is nothing to suggest that Krishnam has received an offer to join the BJP.