New Delhi: Even as the Congress were on way to losing Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections on Monday, Congress president Rahul Gandhi attended the Parliament but did not talk to the media.
However, Congress leaders on Monday said that the party's improved electoral performance in Gujarat was the result of Rahul's effective leadership and the beginning of his political story.
While Kamal Nath pointed out that Gujarat is a BJP bastion and Shashi Tharoor appreciated the fact that the "journey" had been good, Renuka Chowdary hailed Gandhi for his "brilliant intervention".
"Every election has its own message. Gujarat has been the BJP's bastion. It is the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Congress' tally has gone up there, while the BJP's numbers have fallen. This is the start of Rahul Gandhi's political story," Nath told reporters outside Parliament.
Renuka Chowdary seconded him. "Congress has done brilliantly. Our strength has increased. Morally, it has been a brilliant intervention of Rahul Gandhi," Chowdary said.
She also accused the PM of postponing the winter session in view of the assembly polls and taking personal swipes at opposition leaders during the poll campaign, marking a "new low" in public discourse.
The jump in the Congress tally, according to trends, was due to Gandhi's "very effective" campaign in the state, Shashi Tharoor added.
"We may not have reached the destination, but our journey was good," Tharoor said.
The elections for 182-seat Assembly were held on December 9 and 14, after an acrimonious campaign, which was dominated by a face-off between PM Modi and Rahul.
The BJP has won every election since 1995 in the home state of PM Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah. In the last state elections in 2012, the BJP won 115 seats and the Congress 61.
However, it was out of power for a couple of years due to party infighting and rebellion by Shankersinh Vaghela. BJP came back to power in 1998 and has ruled uninterrupted since then.
(With PTI inputs)
