Congress suffers setback, even in Amethi, Rae Bareli

The Congress has been dealt a severe blow with its rural units failing to make a mark even in Amethi and Rae Bareli--the Lok Sabha seats of Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Sonia Gandhi-- in the panchayat elections in Uttar Pradesh.

The party’s claims of setting up its units at grass roots levels to strengthen the party at the village and booth levels have come a cropper as the party could not fare well anywhere.

Although the panchayat elections are not contested on party lines, the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) had asked its units across the state to extend full support to all the partymen contesting the panchayat poll and even announced an incentive of giving a preference to the winners in distribution of tickets for the 2017 assembly elections.

“District panchayat president of Rae Bareli Suman Singh (sister in law of Congress MLC Dinesh Singh) contesting for the district panchayat member has lost the poll. Dinesh Singh’s brother Awadhesh Singh, however, won the poll,” said a party leader from Rae Bareli.

Yet the mood in Rae Bareli Congress is upbeat saying the party’s main adversaries have lost the poll badly. “Amitabh Pandey, the brother Manoj Pandey (minister in Samajwadi Party government) and SP MLA Devendra Pratap Singh’s son Divyambar Singh have lost the polls. Both of them could have been potential contenders for the district panchayat president’s post. As Congress MLC’s brother Awadhesh Singh has won the poll, we are sure to win the district panchayat president’s seat in Rae Bareli,” he said.

“The party’s candidate however lost in Udwa, the model village in Rae Bareli,” said the leader.

In Amethi also, the party leaders claimed the scenario for the Congress was not as bad as may have been projected.

“The Congress leaders have won nine of 26 seats where they contested in Amethi. The BJP has won only on four seats,” said Amethi district Congress committee president Yogendra Mishra. “The Congress’ Kamla Devi had won district panchayat president’s seat in Amethi earlier. She, however, had switched her loyalties to the Samajwadi Party. The SP’s candidates have won on at least 11 to 12 seats. So, the Congress remains in bad shape in Amethi,” said another leader.

The Congress has not fared well in other parts of the state as well. Barring Pratapgarh, the Congress leaders have not been able to make a mark even in the constituencies of the party’s stalwarts.

“We are yet to get reports from districts. Out of nearly 3112 posts of district panchayat member, the Congress leaders had contested 1562 seats. As of now, the party candidates have won only 81 seats. There are reports that 40 party supported candidates have also won in different districts,” said a senior party leader.

UPCC president Nirmal Khatri however said the pressure tactics, misuse of official machinery and money power were main reasons for the prevailing scenario.

“We were hoping for the better,” said Khatri.