Assembly Election 2018 Results: Congress chief Rahul Gandhi confident to defeat BJP in 2019, Modi says winning-losing an integral part of life

Assembly Election 2018 Results: A resurgent Congress on Tuesday made significant gains in the Assembly elections, dealing a body blow to the BJP in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and was locked in a cliffhanger in Madhya Pradesh.

Assembly Election 2018 Results: A victory in these elections gave the Congress party a strong momentum ahead of the General Elections in 2019. (PTI)

Assembly Election 2018 Results: The Congress party on December 11 gave a major jolt to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Assembly Election 2018 by registering its victory in Hindi heartland - Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. A victory in these elections gave the Congress party a strong momentum ahead of the General Elections in 2019. The Congress president said that his party will also defeat Narendra Modi-led BJP government in 2019 Lok Sabha polls as well. "We defeated BJP today, we'll defeat them in 2019 Lok Sabha polls too," Rahul Gandhi said. He further said the outcome is a "clear message" to the Modi government that people are not happy with it and time has come for a change. Prime Minister Narendra Modi got a massive mandate but refused to listen to "heartbeat of the country", Gandhi told reporters. The Assembly Election results on Tuesday decided the fate of as many as 8,500 candidates across five states, including Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram. With Congress set to form governments in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and locked in a close fight in Madhya Pradesh, Gandhi said the selection of chief ministers in the three states will be done "smoothly". "We have defeated the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh... There will be no issue over (selection of) chief minister. It will be done smoothly," he said. Congress chief also said Modi taught him "what not to do" and he also "learnt a lot" from the massive defeat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. "Certain amount of arrogance came in. I think that is fatal for a politician. That is something I learnt from how he has acted. For me the best teachers are the people of this country," Gandhi asserted, adding that he has had a "nice journey" since 2014. To another question on whether the Congress was now thinking of a 'BJP-mukt Bharat', Gandhi answered in the negative and said the party's approach was different as it wanted to defeat them but not free India from anyone. Meanwhile, PM Narendra Modi congratulated the Congress, the TRS and the MNF for their victories and said the BJP accepts people's mandate with humility. "Victory and defeat are an integral part of life. Today's results will further our resolve to serve people and work even harder for the development of India," he said.