The mandate from the people of Haryana has left the Congress party questioning what went wrong. So the leaders who are disappointed by this defeat have their own version. If Rahul Gandhi, the supreme leader of Congress, truly wants to understand the reasons behind the party’s defeat, he should meet with the individual leaders who lost the election and seek their honest insights.
Somehow, if Rahul Gandhi is not able to have an interaction with all the leaders; he must ascertain to meet those 10 to 12 prominent leaders from his party who lost, as the odds of gaining valuable insights from them are significantly higher. Many leaders disheartened by Haryana’s defeat express this sentiment.
If the reasons for losses in other states remain unknown, the same fate could befall Haryana. Had the Congress identified the causes of its defeat in a significant state like Rajasthan last year, Haryana might have been spared.
In Rajasthan, it was not just external factors but also internal members who sought to undermine the party, as they did not want to see Ashok Gehlot’s government continue. Consequently, the party faced electoral losses. Rajasthan was a crucial state for Congress. If Congress had won just Rajasthan, the political landscape of the country might have been different. Coincidentally, the same team in Delhi that was active during the defeat in Haryana was also at the helm during Rajasthan’s loss. Organization General Secretary KC Venugopal, Ajay Maken, and Jairam Ramesh have not been held accountable for any of Congress’s defeats to date. After Rajasthan, Haryana was the second state that could have fully restored Congress’s standing, especially with party members energized by winning 99 seats in the Lok Sabha. However, former CM Bhupendra Singh Hooda, a key figure the party relied on, has come under scrutiny. Farmer leader Pradhan Gurnam Singh Chadni has revealed troubling truths about the farmers’ movement, suggesting that Hooda may have been involved in manipulation. Despite the party’s claims about EVM tampering, alternative explanations are gradually coming to light.
Now, the former Chief Minister Bhupendra Singh Hooda has come under scanner. The opponents are taking a direct aim at him. Hooda and his family are being held completely responsible for the defeat. For the defeat in many seats, not outsiders but our own people are being held responsible. There was fear of party MPs Shailja and Randeep Singh Surjewala, and there are reports of some leaders close to them being targeted and defeated.
Uchana and Ganaur seats are just examples. Brijendra Singh, who lost from Uchana by just 32 votes, instead of questioning the EVMs, said that the reason for the defeat was a behind the scenes conspiracy.