WE LOST DELHI BECAUSE…

CHECKLIST

p C Chacko, Congress general secretary in charge of Delhi: “The downfall of the Congress party started in 2013 when Sheila (Dikshit) ji was the CM. The emergence of a new party, AAP, took away the entire Congress vote bank. We could never get it back...”

Sandeep Dikshit, former Delhi MP from Congress: “We tried to showcase the work done by Sheilaji, but it was done really late because unfortunately Subhash Chopraji (Delhi Congress chief) was given the responsibility really late.”

Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Punjab minister: “We were zero earlier, and this time too we are zero. So it’s not our defeat, but of the BJP."

Jaiveer Shergill, Congress leader: “There is a need for a new face to lead the party in the state and the Congress must come out of this phase of experimentation and back a team for the next four years. It cannot be business as usual.”

Pawan Khera, Congress leader: “Organisations tend to depend on personalities and Sheila Dikshit’s demise impacted the performance of the party in the state. We need to build new leadership.”

Manoj Tiwari, BJP state chief: "We couldn't perform well. We will evaluate this. Sometimes we get discouraged when results are not as per our expectations, but I would like to tell our workers not to be disheartened. Compared to 2015 our winning percentage has increased."

Gautam Gambhir, BJP MP from Delhi: “We tried our best, but probably could not convince the people of the state.”

Defeated BJP candidate Kapil Mishra: “The BJP has lost the fifth state election in a row. It means we have somewhere failed to connect with the people of Delhi."