Senior Congress leader Tariq Anwar on November 12 came out with the candid admission that his party, on account of its dismal performance in the Bihar Assembly elections, emerged as the weak link preventing the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) from forming its government in the State.
He also expressed worry over entry of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) in Bihar.
Mr. Anwar, an AICC general secretary, came out with a flurry of tweets calling for “urgent and deep introspection” over the debacle of the party, the second largest constituent of the opposition coalition, which contested as many as 70 seats but returned with a tally of just 19.
“We must accept the truth. Because of the poor performance of the Congress, Bihar has been deprived of a Mahagathbandhan government. The Congress must introspect as to where it faltered. Also, the entry of AIMIM in Bihar is not a good sign,” Mr. Anwar tweeted.
Talking to PTI , Mr. Anwar, who had been a multiple term MP from Katihar in the State, added, “The Congress is opposed to communalism in all forms. The AIMIM seeks to mobilise support of Muslims in much the same way as the BJP does in case of Hindus. Both would feed on each other.”
“This is not good for the society at large. The AIMIM has made inroads in the densely populated Kosi Seemanchal region which has a high concentration of Muslims, and always been known for social harmony,” he added.
The Hyderabad MP’s party has returned with a tally of five seats, less than a year after registering its first victory in the State in a by-election.
Mr. Anwar said, “The BJP-led NDA has managed to win the elections yen ken prakaren [adopting all measures, fair and foul] but Bihar has lost. Bihar wanted change. It wanted deliverance from the woes brought about by an incompetent government in the last 15 years.”
Mr. Anwar, who was a member of the campaign committee set up by the Congress for the Assembly polls, also took a dig at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, whose JD(U) has witnessed a sharp decline in its tally compared to what it was five years ago, and now has far fewer seats than the BJP.
The JD(U) had won 71 seats in 2015 when it was a partner in the Grand Alliance which included Lalu Prasad’s RJD and the Congress. This time it has only 43 MLAs against the saffron party’s 71.
“Nitish Kumar may get sworn in as the Chief Minister, for the last time, if the BJP remains benevolent towards him. But bakre ki maan kab tak khair manaayegi [how long can a lamb escape being slaughtered],” the former Union Minister tweeted.
Losing 51 seats out of a total of 70 where the Congress fielded its candidates is a big setback for the party, Mr. Anwar said.
He said that he would inform the party high command on this on the basis of the feedback he has received from the party’s grass-root workers.
Earlier, CPI(ML) Secretary General Dipankar Bhattacharya voiced disapproval of the decision to grant 70 seats to the Congress.
“Apparently, 70 assembly segments in Bihar were too much to handle for the Congress,” said Bhattacharya, whose party is a part of the Mahagathbandhan and has come out with a stellar performance, winning 12 seats out of the 19 it had contested.
JD(U) spokesman Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, however, sneered at Mr. Anwar and claimed the Mahagathbandhan’s performance would have been worse but for Chirag Paswan’s LJP, which he did not mention by name.
“The Congress and the Mahagathbandhan should consider themselves lucky. Had a vote katwa [vote splitter] not entered the scene, they would have been wiped out,” Mr. Prasad said.
Meanwhile, former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, whose HAM(S) is an NDA constituent and has won four seats, sought to muddy the waters for the Opposition by saying that Congress MLAs should consider joining Mr. Nitish Kumar.
“Nitish is the leader of all. Congress MLAs should consider joining him,” Mr. Manjhi said mischievously.
Buoyed by encouraging reports of the exit polls, the Congress had rushed senior leaders including Randeep Surjewala, Avinash Pande, Subodh Kant Sahay and some ministers and MLAs from Rajasthan and Punjab to prevent “poaching” of newly elected MLAs, party sources said.
But, the declaration of results on November 10 ended their euphoria and Mr. Surjewala and others left Patna on November 11 morning.
