Bhopal, Apr 30 (IANS): Congress General Secretary in-charge for Madhya Pradesh, Deepak Babaria, has resigned from his post on health grounds.

Party President Sonia Gandhi on Thursday accepted his resignation and asked Mukul Wasnik, the General Secretary in-charge of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, to hold additional charge of Madhya Pradesh.

During his tenure, Babaria had the painful experience of seeing the party spill power in MP in just 15 months following the defection of Jyotiraditya Scindia and 22 of his supporters to the BJP.

Sources close to Babaria said that he was upset that the BJP spent a whopping Rs 1,000 crore to tap Scindia's "killing" ambition and snatched power in the state last month.

Babaria had consistently denied Scindia's accusation that he was slighted in the party and had no option but to join the BJP.

"The Congress high command gave him immense space. Scindiaji was offered the Deputy Chief Minister's post which he refused," Babaria had said.

Babaria had to stay off the action due to illness during the 18-day long drama which unfolded in MP, Delhi, Haryana and Bengaluru that led to the Congress' ouster.

"Scindiaji was among the top five national leaders in the Congress. He was one among our three top leaders in the state. In the BJP, he is among 25 leaders at the national level and among 10 in MP," he had once said.

Babaria would not go on record about it but there were enough indications that he was not happy with the way the party was being run in the state.

Both former Chief Ministers Kamal Nath and Digvijay had displeased the cadre and overlooked the brewing resentment. Babaria was acknowledged as an earnest office-bearer of the party. He was upset that the party took just 15 months to squander the power it had gained after 15 years' struggle.