In the assembly polls held in five states – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telnagna and Mizoram – the Congress registered victory only in Telangana.
Staff Reporter
The results in Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan, where the Congress faced a crushing defeat, were “disappointing” but the party is not “dispirited and certainly not dejected,” Congress General Secretary (Communication) Jairam Ramesh said, briefing reporters on the party’s Parliamentary strategy group meeting on Monday.
He also informed that the party will strongly oppose the three bills seeking to replace the existing criminal justice system, alleging that the legislation was bulldozed through the standing committee without any “meaningful discussions or consultations”. The party has also demanded a debate on the “current economic situation” and the “challenges to our foreign policy – especially the border situation.”
”We accept the verdict. It fell far below our expectations, we are analysing these details…our resolve remains undiminished. We will fight even harder,” Congress General Secretary and in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh said at a briefing after the meeting.
He said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called an informal meeting of INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) on Wednesday and a formal meeting of the Opposition bloc might be held later.
Referring to the meeting convened by Gandhi, Ramesh, who is the Congress MP in Rajya Sabha, said: “Today evening, the Bills that the government will bring (during the Winter Session of Parliament) and the issues on which we want discussion were discussed at length.”
“We will openly oppose the Bills on which we have objections. But, we will definitely take part in the debate,” he said.
Kharge, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, held a meeting of the INDIA bloc leaders to chalk out the strategy for the Winter Session of the Parliament.
Apart from Gandhi, who is the chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) and Kharge, the meeting was attended by party MPs P Chidambaram, KC Venugopal and Shashi Tharoor, among others.
In the assembly polls held in five states – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telnagna and Mizoram – the Congress registered victory only in Telangana.
Party’s Parliamentary Strategy Group meeting was chaired by Congress Parliamentary Party leader Sonia Gandhi, on the first day of the winter session and a day after the results of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan were announced. Speaking on the results, Mr. Ramesh said that it fell far short of the party’s expectations but described it as a “temporary setback”. “The results were certainly disappointing but we are not dispirited and certainly not dejected. We accept the verdict and are analysing it in detail. Our resolve to fight even harder remains undiminished and we will fight even harder,” he added. Congress, he said, is conscious that only a short time is left for the Lok Sabha elections. “We will be preparing in all earnestness, rigor and with determination. This was the message of today’s meeting,” Mr. Ramesh averred.