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Congress panel takes feedback on Himachal Lok Sabha polls debacle
Congress Himachal unit chief Pratibha Singh says the party was confident about winning at least two seats in the Lok Sabha polls
A two-member panel constituted by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) began a two-day brainstorming session with leaders and party workers in Shimla to assess the factors that led to the debacle in the Lok Sabha elections, with the party failing to win a single seat in Himachal.
The panel comprises Rajya Sabha member Rajni Patil and former Lok Sabha member PL Punia.
Despite being in power in the state, the Congress had in a setback lost all four Lok Sabha seats to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Chief minister (CM) Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu before leaving for Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Congress office and met the members of the fact-finding panel. Congress state unit chief Pratibha Singh and Deputy CM Mukesh Agnihotri also met the central leaders
“We lost all four seats this year, but there has been an increase of 14% vote share in the state, which is important. We contested with full efforts and the four candidates were also strong and there were some reasons due to which we lost. We are assessing it.” Sukhu said.
Pratibha Singh There, meanwhile, said they were confident of winning the Mandi seat, adding, “All the issues that came to the fore during the elections will be taken up with the committee.”
Rajani Patil, who is heading the committee, said the report will be submitted to the top party leadership after seeking feedback from party leaders and workers during the two days.
“The All India Congress committee has decided that in the areas where the Congress has not performed well — Himachal, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi — they shall do fact-finding on the reasons for defeat and what needs to be done to strengthen the party.”
Addressing the Congress’ bypolls win in Himachal, Patil said people have taught a lesson to those who want to break parties, adding, “Rahul Gandhi has raised the issues of unemployment and other issues and people understand it. In Himachal, we have a stable government, the CM is doing good and the BJP has in its DNA to look to topple governments. We are meeting leaders here and the CM and other leaders will develop a new model of development.”
In the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP, moreover, led in 61 out of 68 assembly segments, while the Congress could secure the lead only from Kullu, Ani, Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur, Jubbal Kotkhai, Rohru, and Haroli. All ministers in the state government, except for deputy CM Mukesh Agnihotri, and education minister Rohit Thakur failed to help the party get a lead from their respective constituencies.
The BJP, on the other hand, has performed well in the state, winning all four Lok Sabha seats. The party’s candidate, Anurag Thakur, won the Hamirpur parliamentary constituency for the fifth time, while Mandi candidate Kangana Ranaut defeated Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh.
