'This zero different from previous zero': Delhi Congress chief
What's the story
Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav on Tuesday said the party's third consecutive tally of zero seats from the recent assembly election was "different" from its past poll performances. He claimed the party managed to create a perception among voters that it was a three-way contest with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), not just a two-way battle. Yadav also expressed hope that Congress could regain support from its core voters, including Dalits, minorities, and underprivileged groups.
Alliance aftermath
Yadav acknowledges alliance impact, criticizes AAP governance
Further, Yadav accepted that the party's alliance with the AAP in the Lok Sabha elections hurt its prospects in Delhi. He said, "100%...that has damaged our prospects." Despite the setback, Congress increased its vote share by 2%, for which Yadav credited its grassroots cadre. He also slammed the AAP's governance and said anti-incumbency and corruption charges led to its defeat.
Bloc challenges
INDIA bloc faces unity questions, Congress's decline traced
The INDIA bloc alliance was challenged internally during the elections, with Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party backing the AAP over Congress. This raised questions about the alliance's unity. Senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal asked parties within the INDIA bloc to "sit together and work things out" after poll debacles. The Congress party's Delhi decline coincided with AAP's rise in 2013, when it lost ground to the latter due to a lack of strong leadership post-Sheila Dikshit.
Leadership vacuum
Congress's struggle and INDIA bloc's reduced state presence
The party failed to find a strong leader after Dikshit, affecting its clout against leaders such as Arvind Kejriwal. Although Rahul Gandhi's successful Bharat Jodo Yatra boosted Lok Sabha results, Congress couldn't leverage the momentum in Delhi. The infighting within the INDIA bloc resulted in diminishing returns in state polls. With the AAP's defeat in Delhi, the number of INDIA bloc governments has shrunk to eight across India.