'Vote Chori' allegations and 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' fail; Congress in shambles in Bihar

NEW DELHI: Congress is in shambles in Bihar. The 'Vote Chori' allegation targeting the Election Commission and the BJP has not gone down well. The Congress performed miserably in the 23 districts where Rahul Gandhi led 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' passed. Congress could win only 6 out of the 61 seats contested.

Congress has plunged further from 19 seats in 2020. The party did not even get the traditional votes of the upper caste, Dalits and Muslims in Seemanchal, Mithila and Magadh. Days before the final phase of voting, Rahul had held a press conference alleging irregularities in the voter list in Haryana. Although he called it a hydrogen bomb that would expose a "vote theft" operation, it was a disaster in Bihar. The alliance with the Congress caused a rift in the RJD's vote also.

Results that expose organizational weakness

There are murmurs within the party that the reluctance of top leaders to lead and coordinate the Congress campaign from the front is what led to the setback in the elections. The 16-day Voter Adhikar Yatra saw a huge turnout, but none of it translated into votes. Rahul left for a foreign trip after the Yatra concluded in Patna on September 1. He became active only after the election was announced. The ripples created by the yatra had already settled down by then.

Despite the elections in Bihar being crucial, the general secretary of the organisation, KC Venugopal, was busy preparing for the local body elections in Kerala. Although there was no general reaction from the party against Venugopal, there is no doubt that it will be discussed in the coming days. The leaders failed to strengthen the party's base in Bihar. Political experts think that the Congress will be saved only if it has clarity of ideology, vibrant leadership, a mass base and a moving organisational framework.

Voters did not jump into the pond

The footage of Rahul Gandhi jumping into a muddy pond in Begusarai and fishing had gone viral. Prime Minister Narendra Modi even mocked Rahul by saying that he was 'practising drowning' in the Bihar elections. The Congress was devastated when the results were announced. Kundan Kumar of the Bharatiya Janata Party defeated Amita Bhushan of the Indian National Congress by 30632 votes in Begusarai. Vikas Sheel Insaan Party leader Mukesh Sahni also joined Rahul in fishing, but his party could not win a single one of the 12 seats contested in Bihar.