Extending support to AAP under consideration: Rahul

The issue of extending support to Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP is ‘under consideration’, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said on Thursday.

His remarks came at a time when Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung has begun efforts to break the impasse on government-formation after the assembly polls threw up a hung verdict.

‘It is under consideration’, Gandhi told reporters when asked if Congress will back AAP to form government in Delhi.

Earlier, Gandhi held a meeting with the newly elected eight party MLAs of Delhi, during which AICC general secretary Shakeel Ahmed and AICC Secretary Kuljit Singh Nagra were also present.

After facing a crushing defeat in Delhi, the Congress high command is all set to rejig the organisation. The remaining eight Congress MLAs on Thursday met AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi to discuss reasons behind the defeat and future plans for the party in the state unit. A senior Congress leader confirmed that the meeting was held at Gandhi’s 12, Tughlaq Road residence at noon.

The meeting lasted for an hour. Sources say Gandhi asked his MLAs to describe the possible reasons of the party’s failure in the assembly elections. Gandhi asked them about the party’s poor return of only eight seats. The party had won 24 seats in 2008 Assembly polls.

‘The MLAs informed Rahul that the party apparently failed to reach out to the public with their agenda. The MLAs also said that lack of enthusiasm in party workers also led to the defeat. The BJP and AAP exploited the situation with tall promises including slashing of power tariffs by 30-50 percent but the Congress party never promised such monetary relief in its manifesto. The anti-incumbency factor was also prevalent and voters were also driven through emotions stirred by AAP,’ said a source.

Lack of faces in the party is also a major issue. If Gandhi rejigs the state unit, the party has hardly any strong leader left undefeated. With the defeat of major leaders such as Sheila Dikshit, AK Walia, Rajkumar Chouhan, Kiran Walia, former speaker Yoganan Shatri and former DPCC president and speaker Chaudhary Prem Singh, the party in now searching for a plan to  rejuvenate the organisation. Sources say Gandhi has indicated that new rules will be set up in the party and it will be followed strictly.

A senior Congress MLA said that in the 15 years, Congress’s had become very weak and ineffective in every sense.

The Delhi polls threw up a fractured mandate with no party securing majority in the 70-member assembly and BJP emerging as the single largest party with 32 seats. BJP’s ally Akali Dal has one MLA.

AAP has got 28 seats in the assembly followed by Congress’ eight. JD-U has won one seat while Mundka seat has gone to an Independent.

Gandhi will be meeting the defeated candidates in batches after 22 December to understand reasons behind the debacle, which saw the party’s tally coming down from 43 to a mere eight. He has also sought a report from all candidates.