Following the Congress party’s unexpected defeat in the Haryana Assembly elections to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), several allies from the INDIA bloc launched pointed criticisms at the party’s leadership, accusing them of arrogance and miscalculating their solo campaign strategy.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut voiced his displeasure, suggesting that the Congress had ignored the possibility of forming a coalition with smaller parties. He argued that the party’s overconfidence contributed significantly to its downfall. “The Congress believed they could win on their own and did not need any other partner. Hooda Ji [former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda] felt they would secure victory,” Raut remarked, adding that if the Congress had collaborated with regional forces like the Samajwadi Party or the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the outcome might have been different.
Raut also praised the BJP’s electoral strategy, stating, “The BJP won a lost battle. Everyone believed the Congress would win, but the BJP’s systematic approach and management turned the tide in their favor.” He acknowledged the success of the INDIA alliance in Jammu and Kashmir, crediting the leadership of Farooq Abdullah for their victory in that region.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader’s comments come amid ongoing seat-sharing negotiations between the Congress, Uddhav Thackeray’s faction, and Sharad Pawar’s NCP-SP alliance in Maharashtra. Thackeray has also demanded that the Congress and NCP-SP announce their Chief Ministerial candidate ahead of the state elections.
The election results saw the BJP securing 48 out of 90 seats in Haryana, while Congress managed only 37. Independents won three seats, and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) secured two.
Adding to the criticism, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale indirectly blamed Congress’s “arrogance and entitlement” for its defeat. “Arrogance, entitlement, and looking down on regional parties is a recipe for disaster,” Gokhale tweeted, taking a jab at Congress without directly naming the party.
Meanwhile, AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar weighed in on the issue and confirmed that her party would contest the Delhi Assembly elections independently. “We will contest Delhi elections alone. On one side is the overconfident Congress, and on the other is the arrogant BJP. We will run based on the achievements we’ve delivered to the people of Delhi over the last decade,” Kakkar stated.
The Congress is now facing pressure from its allies to re-examine its approach as it prepares for the Maharashtra elections, where alliance building and cooperation with regional forces will be critical to its electoral strategy.
