Sidelining of state leaders could have led to Congress’ drubbing

The Congress’s decision to deploy central leaders in Bihar and sideline the state leadership in overseeing the poll management appears to have backfired on the grand old party in the assembly elections.

A Congress functionary said Bihar leaders felt slighted after the central team completely took over the party’s election management from the state leadership.

Soon after its list of candidates was released, the Congress leadership had deployed central teams to quell the rebellion triggered by the selection of “tainted” leaders and also to oversee the party’s poll preparations.

This was perhaps the first time when the All India Congress Committee (AICC), the party’s central unit, had taken complete charge of the poll management and preparations during any state election, people aware of the development said.

The functionary quoted above said Bihar Congress chief Madan Mohan Jha was missing from the party’s campaign trail though it was initially stated that he was busy with his own election to the legislative council.

“But that ended on October 22. He was not even present at the time of releasing the party manifesto. Similarly, other senior leaders too were missing,” said Bihar Congress leader Kishore Kumar Jha.

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Another senior leader Shamim Akhtar said the move to bring in outsiders for poll management triggered backlash from the sidelined workers who as a reaction did not participate in the party’s campaigning.

“There was a reaction from rank and file. Congress workers were not involved in the election management. There was no crisis management. Most of the people who came from outside failed to understand the caste complexity and geographical heterogeneity of Bihar,” he said.

The party was considered as the “weakest link” in the mahagathbandhan and performed badly, winning just 19 of the 70 seats it contested, whereas its coalition partner, Rashtriya Janata Dal emerged as the single largest party winning 75 seats.

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