New Delhi: The Congress party was on Friday faced with growing unease in its ranks over the poll debacle and the leadership continued to ringfence Rahul Gandhi saying the party vice president had not taken a “single decision on his own”.
With calls for a major surgery being made after the election loss in Assam and Kerala, the leadership again harped on “collective responsibility” in a bid to deflect criticism of Rahul Gandhi.
Party spokesman P C Chacko said that Rahul did not take a single decision on his own and had always kept the Congress Working Committeee (CWC) on board.
He also sought to shift the blame on the states saying they decided they had taken decisions on poll strategy according to local conditions.
On senior leader Digvijay Singh’s pitch for “major surgery”in the organisation that has created flutters, Chacko said suggestions from senior leaders were welcome.
He, however, frowned upon Singh going public saying ? wish suggestions are made inside party fora.”
Chacko also suggested that the national leadership was not washing its hands off the defeat.
“We had given full freedom to state units to decide the poll strategy. We are not saying national leadership is not responsible,” he said in reply to questions.
Meanwhile, reflecting the growing unease, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were today urged to don the role of “surgeons” to put the organisation back on the path of recovery.
Senior leader who heads the party group in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said wherever there are shortcomings the party should go into it and remove them.
Congress rivals and former Congress rebels who have now joined hands with BJP gunned for Rahul and said no surgery could save Congress because it was afflicted with the “cancer of corruption”.
A day after his remarks about the need for surgery in the Congress created flutters, senior leader Digvijay Singh said the surgeons are Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and they should “take action forthwith” to set right matters in the party.
In a bid to shield the leadership from any attack in the wake of crushing defeat in Assam and other states, he said, “Everyone is accountable and responsible for victory or defeat, no one individual.”
He made it clear that Sonia and Rahul cannot be blamed for the electoral debacle.
—PTI