Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday presided over a review meeting with party leader Rahul Gandhi and General Secretary KC Venugopal to delve into the complexities of the Madhya Pradesh election results. In response to the results, Congress leader Randeep Surjewala stated, "We thoroughly examined the causes of the defeat and presented our perspectives to Rahul Gandhi. We sought his advice on the best course of action," news agency PTI quoted him as saying.
"We looked at where we were lacking in the state. Rahul Gandhi also made a few suggestions to the committee. We have delegated the final decision and the subsequent process to the national president (Mallikarjun Kharge)," he added.
The meeting, held at the headquarters of the All India Congress Committee in Delhi, was attended by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Chhattisgarh's acting Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
Following the party's defeat in both states, the Congress leadership, led by Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, called a separate meeting to review the Chhattisgarh election results. This development was confirmed by the party, which shared images from the meeting at the Congress headquarters in Delhi.
Kumari Selja, AICC General Secretary in-charge for Chhattisgarh, expressed the party's resolve, saying, "We are dejected but not demoralised". Despite losing Chhattisgarh, our vote share remains stable. We have gained the public's trust." Selja emphasised that, while disappointed, the party is not despairing and has vowed to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections collectively, PTI reported.
Key party leaders, including AICC General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal, Congress screening committee head Ajay Maken, and former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, attended the Chhattisgarh review meeting. Former Deputy Chief Minister T S Singh Deo, former minister Tamradhwaj Sahu, PCC President Deepak Baij, and several senior leaders were also present.
AICC General Secretary in-charge Randeep Surjewala, PCC President Kamal Nath, former Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh, and AICC screening committee head Jitendra Singh were among the notable figures present at the Madhya Pradesh review meeting, along with other state leaders.