Just a day after senior party leader and former union minister Kapil Sibal held the incumbent leadership of the Indian National Congress (INC) responsible for the party's streak of debacles in Bihar Assembly polls and a host of bypolls, Rajasthan's Chief Minister (CM) Ashok Gehlot has come out attacking the former over his criticism of the leadership, reports Indian Express.

CM Gehlot slammed Sibal for airing his views on Congress party's leadership woes in public. He tried to press that there was "no need" for Sibal to mention “internal issues” in the media. He also added that after every electoral loss, the party had shown “undivided and firm belief in the leadership”.

CM Gehlot mentioned that Congress had witnessed electoral setbacks in 1969, 1977, 1989 and in 1996, but came out stronger each time due to its "ideology, programmes, policies and firm belief in party leadership."

This came even as other party leaders like its Members of Parliament (MPs) Vivek Tankha and Karti Chidambaram backed Sibal's views and reiterated the same. Speaking in a no-holds-barred fashion, Tankha said, "Others may not speak because they have their own issues. I and Kapil have no other issues. Our issue is the revival of the Congress. And if people like us don’t come forward and speak about it, history will not forgive us."