Congress Working Committee Holds Discussion On Poll Debacle

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were present in this meeting held at the AICC office here.

New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) held a meeting in the national capital on Sunday where the party discussed the poll debacle in five states, including politically crucial Uttar Pradesh, and the current political situation.

The meeting was chaired by party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were present in this meeting held at the AICC office here.

Besides, several senior Congress leaders, including Ambika Soni, Harish Rawat and Mallikarjun Kharge, were also present in this meeting.

Former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh and four other senior Congress leaders were, however, not present in the CWC meeting.

Besides Dr Singh, former defence minister A.K. Antony, G. Sanjeeva Reddy, Tariq Hameed Karra, former Manipur deputy chief minister Gaikhangam and MP A. Chella Kumar were not present in the meeting, ANI reported.

The CWC meeting assumes significance as the results of the five assembly elections came as a shock to the grand old party.

The party also failed to live up to the expectation in Uttar Pradesh.

Despite an aggressive campaign led by Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the party was reduced to a single-digit count winning just two seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won in Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand.

The Congress also had to accept defeat at the hands of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab.

The CWC meeting also assumes significance as ANI earlier reported sources as saying that G23, the dissident group within the grand old party, had suggested Mukul Wasnik’s name for the party president’s post.

This suggestion of the G23 to name Wasnik for the party chief’s post was, however, not accepted, said sources, the news agency reported.

Earlier in the day, the Congress interim held a meeting to discuss the party’s strategy for the second part of the budget session beginning on Monday.

The second half of the budget session will conclude on April 8.

The first half of the budget session began on January 31 and concluded on February 11.