To prevent any mischief by BJP, senior leaders have been sent to the states
Determined to not let the BJP outsmart them, the Congress has rushed senior leaders to the states that have gone to polls to keep party legislators together and explore alliance options in case no party ends up with a majority.
The move comes after exit polls ahead of the March 10 results predicted a close contest in Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur. The exit polls also indicated that the Congress may lose Punjab to prime challenger Aam Aadmi Party.
A senior Congress leader told NDTV that the party is hopeful that it would do much better on March 10 than what the exit poll numbers have shown.
To prevent any mischief by BJP, senior leaders have been sent to the states.
The Congress high command has now sent its Karnataka unit chief D K Shivakumar to Goa, sources said. It has reportedly moved all its candidates to a resort and they may later be shifted to Mumbai to prevent horse-trading, sources said.
Besides Mr Shivakumar, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram has been tasked with opening talks with smaller parties and independents, the sources added. The party, it is learnt, has also reached out to the Trinamool Congress and the AAP, its known adversaries in other states.
The swift moves by Congress in Goa come against the backdrop of its 2017 blunder when it failed to form the government despite finishing as the single largest party.
In Uttarakhand, where the exit polls have predicted a neck-to-neck contest between the ruling BJP and the Opposition Congress, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, Deepender Hooda, former Karnataka minister MB Patil and Mohan Prakash have been sent to keep the Congress flock together.
In Punjab, where it is fighting hard to retain power following a campaign that suffered due to infighting, senior leaders Ajay Maken and Bhupinder Hooda have been tasked with swift manoeuvres post poll results.
In Manipur, where the party is expecting a good show, senior leaders Jairam Ramesh, Mukul Wasnik, TS Singh Deo (Chhattisgarh minister), Gaurav Gogoi and Vincent Pala have reached to keep party candidates together.
The senior leaders will be reportedly meeting all 55 party candidates for a meeting this evening, followed by dinner.