JOIN USOn Friday, Congress president Sonia Gandhi summoned senior leaders R V Deshpande and Siddaramaiah to Delhi and sought an explanation from them on the debacle.
KPCC president Deshpande and leader of the opposition in the Legislative Assembly Siddaramaiah, who met Gandhi separately, refused to divulge what transpired at the meetings.
But they are believed to have told her that infighting in the State Congress, delay in issuing ‘B’ forms to candidates, and poor groundwork were some reasons for the party’s failure in the BBMP elections. When reporters sought details about his meeting with Gandhi, Deshpande merely said: “It was just a courtesy call and nothing significant was discussed.”
However, Siddaramaiah said he had explained to the Congress president what led to the defeat in the BBMP poll. “Though we could have won more seats, several factors failed us,” he said.
Two chiefs opposed
Meanwhile, opposition leader in the Legislative Council Motamma on Friday questioned the presence of two power centres — the president and the working president — in the KPCC, saying this created confusion among party workers. She told the media in Bangalore that the State Congress never had two power centres in the past. “In my opinion, Karnataka does not merit the dual leadership system. We always had one person as president,” she said.
She denied reports that there were differences between president R V Deshpande and working president D K Shivakumar. Both have been working for the party’s welfare, she said.
“I too have no differences with them. My argument is that whenever there are two people in power, it encourages groupism. This may lead to differences within the party. One person as in-charge of the party affairs helps strengthen the party,” she said.
Motamma said the BJP had no face to go before the public in the gram panchayat elections. The party had failed on all fronts, including power supply and providing drinking water. Villagers will teach the BJP a lesson, she added.