Congress leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi today claimed that BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s campaigning had no big affect on the outcome of Delhi polls.
The former Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee chief accepted the defeat and said Delhi election is a matter of concern for the party.
“We humbly welcome the verdict. In due course we will analyse the reasons behind the defeat.
“Remember, these four states have always been a stronghold of BJP and yet they (BJP) have failed to get a simple majority in Delhi and struggled for a win in Chhattisgarh,” Joshi said in a telephonic conversation.
Joshi, also the woman face of Congress in UP, said that Shiela Dikshit is still a popular leader in Delhi and it is surprising that she lost (to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal).
She rebutted the claims that it was Modi who attracted voters. “BJP may have gained seats but Modi factor is completely missing because vote share of BJP in Delhi this time has come down as compared to the 2008 polls,” she claimed.
When asked about the main reason for Congress’ drubbing in Delhi she said,”After holding power for 15 years people were looking for a change. Anna’s movement threw up a new party ‘Aam Aadmi Party’ that promised a new style of governance and Congress’ voters shifted towards them”.
Abbas Haider, former chairman of UP Congress marketing cell said price rise and lack of governance is definitely not a reason for the Congress defeat in Delhi.
Joining the chorus with Bahuguna he also said that its not Modi behind BJP votes. “If Modi was a factor then BJP would have not fallen short of majority” he said.