Rahul Gandhi breaks silence.
Breaking his silence on Congress' debacle in North Eastern states which had elections recently, party president Rahul Gandhi said that they respect the mandate.
There have been criticism about Congress President being absent on Saturday, when results were announced for Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura. Rahul Gandhi is currently in Italy to surprise his grandmother.
Taking to Twitter, Rahul said,
The Congress party respects the mandate of the people of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya.
We are committed to strengthening our party across the North East and to winning back the trust of the people.
My sincere thanks to each and every Congress worker who toiled for the party.
— Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) March 5, 2018
Rahul Gandhi's tweet which hints at introspection comes after Congress' dismal performance in the polls. It failed to open its account in Nagaland and Tripura. It was the single largest party in Meghalaya but got outsmarted by BJP, which managed to cobble up an alliance to form the government. In Tripura, where it was the principal opposition party, the entire votebank got transferred to BJP.
BJP leaders have hailed the verdict and said it is a precursor to what will happen in Karnataka and other parts of the country. However Congress have termed this election result as aberration.
Tripura poll results will have no impact in Karnataka, where Assembly elections are expected to be held in a few months time, as there is no "Modi wave" in this state, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said.
He also said the state BJP should worry about how B S Yeddyurappa, who was imprisoned in an illegal land denotification case and "presided over mining loot", would convince voters of providing stable, corruption-free governance in case the saffron party wins the Karnataka polls.
"Post #Tripura results there is excitement in media about the results' implications for Karnataka. Since 2014 Lok Sabha results #BJP has lost Assembly segments in over 50 Lok Sabha Seats & has won only about 2 LS seats. So let us not lose perspective: there is no Modi wave here (sic)," Siddaramaiah tweeted on Sunday.
Spotlighting the differences between the BJP and its coalition partners in the northeast, the Congress today accused the party of playing a "dangerous game of destabilising the region through its blind quest for power at any cost .
The differences are on key issues such as the bifurcation of Tripura and Meghalaya, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said in a series of tweets as the BJP was set to form government with its partners in the northeast states of Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland. BJP is following a dangerous game of destabilisation, subversion and usurpation of power in North East, unmindful of the stability, security, peace and progress. Hope Modiji had cared to learn from Rajivji who put Nation First and brought peace to the region by Assam and Mizo accords, he said.
Every Indian, he added, is concerned that assumption of power at any cost and by any means by the BJP doesn't blind it into destabilising the entire region. Tell tale signs of BJP s blind quest for power superseding the stability of region, propagation of democracy, nipping the separatist tendencies and ignoring core issues of region are already visible, Surjewala said. In Tripura, the Congress leader said, BJP has aligned with the IPFT, a party with division of the state as its election plank which is now demanding a tribal chief minister.
(It is) Time for Modi Government/BJP to address both issues. Does it stand for demand for division of State of Tripura? Would it reject the demand for a tribal CM? he asked.
In Nagaland, the BJP is in government with the NPF and yet fought and election in alliance with opposition party NDPP, the Congress leader said. The NPF won 26 seats and the NDPP won 18 seats.
With both NPF and NDPP staking claim to form the Government, Is Nagaland headed for another round of instability like in last 5 years? And Naga Accord? he asked. In Manipur, the Congress leader said the BJP s coalition survives with the support of three NPF MLAs. "Would the formation of a govt in Nagaland by BJP with NDPP (18 MLAs) ignoring the NPF (26 MLAs), only in the effort of a larger share of pie of power, not put the stability of Government in Manipur under a cloud?" he asked.
Moving on to Meghalaya, Surjewala said every discordant party that fought BJP and each other, "ideologically-politically-electorally", is sewn up to form the government at any cost -- NPP+UDP+PDF+HSDP+BJP+Ind. "Is this the answer to Meghalaya's aspirations and a stable Government?" The chief ministerial candidate Conrad Sangma and his party NPP have promised division of Meghalaya and a separate state of Garoland, he said, asking if other parties agreed to this.
"Does Mr Sangma propose to carry out the promise on becoming CM? And what is Modiji s/BJP take on it? Surjewala tweeted. He, however, gave his party s best wishes to the people of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, praying that peace, progress, cohabitation and development would be on the agendas of the new governments.
With agency inputs
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