Gujarat fails-Himachal passes, Congress’s winning formula is out!
“The basis of Congress is still ‘familyism’.” This is the thing that BJP and its leaders have been doing since long in their rallies, election campaigns, speeches in Parliament, street corners, TV debates and conversations. But this time i.e. from Gujarat to Himachal Pradesh, the Congress snatched away the issue of familyism from the BJP. The Gandhi family was not seen playing on the front foot in the campaign for the assembly elections in both these places. So, it becomes necessary to understand that how successful and how much the Congress failed without the Gandhi family?
What benefited the Congress?
Actually, the results of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh assembly elections have come now. BJP has broken all its own and Congress records in its Gujarat. BJP has become the most seat winning party in the history of Gujarat, BJP has almost 53% vote share, which is the highest for BJP in any assembly elections held in Gujarat. On the other hand, this is the worst performance of the Congress so far. The Congress, which gave a tough fight to the BJP by securing 42% votes in the 2017 elections, has been able to secure only 27% votes this time. Congress managed to win only 17 seats.
These are the figures, now let’s come to the question of Gandhi family. In fact, in this entire election, Gandhi family’s chasham-o-chirag Rahul was absent. Rahul Gandhi is on Congress’s India Joint Tour. Because of which he campaigned only in Surat and Rajkot. Now it is a different matter that the election of a state was near and the biggest leader of the party was away from the election campaign thinking of the alleged distance.
At the same time, the newly appointed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge entered the election campaign at the last moment. This too must have had an impact in the Gujarat elections. On the other hand, if we look at the last election, Congress won 77 seats in 2017, and BJP was reduced to only 99 due to the aggressive campaigning of Rahul Gandhi and the strategy of bringing together the leaders who came out of the issue of Patidar movement, Dalit atrocities. But this time Rahul’s not being active in Gujarat has also done some damage to the party.
President from outside gandhi family
Let us tell you that this is the first time after 1999 or rather the first election where the president of the Congress party does not belong to the Gandhi family. In 1999, Sonia Gandhi took over as the president after removing Sitaram Kesri. Mallikarjun Kharge, who comes from the Dalit society, is the president of the Congress. In such a situation, this election is also important for them.
Congress without Gandhi family in Himachal Pradesh?
Like in Gujarat, Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi kept themselves away from the assembly election campaign. Although Priyanka Gandhi held meetings at many places and took part in making the party’s strategy. Crowds also came to Priyanka Gandhi’s rallies. But the Congress did not allow this entire campaign to focus on the Gandhi family.
In Himachal Pradesh, the Congress reposed faith in the local leaders. Made a strategy to surround BJP on local issues. BJP President JP Nadda comes from Himachal, Union Minister Anurag Thakur’s political legacy is also connected here, but still BJP lost in front of Congress.
