NEW DELHI: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi expressed his ‘heartfelt gratitude’ to the people of Jammu and Kashmir for their support while also acknowledging the party’s need to analyze its ‘unexpected’ losses in the Haryana Assembly elections.
Rahul said, “My heartfelt thanks to the people of Jammu and Kashmir – India’s victory in the state is a victory of the Constitution, a victory of democratic self-respect.We are analysing the unexpected results of Haryana. We will inform the Election Commission about the complaints coming from many assembly constituencies,”
Signaling a commitment despite electoral setback, Rahul added, “Heartfelt thanks to all the people of Haryana for their support and to our Babbar Sher workers for their tireless hard work. We will continue this fight for rights, for social and economic justice, for truth, and will keep raising your voice.”
This comes after BJP‘s IT cell chief Amit Malviya on Wednesday questioned Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his silence following the election results in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir. Malviya accused Rahul Gandhi of displaying “arrogance” and “lack of grace” in the aftermath of the Congress party’s defeat in Haryana.
BJP achieved its best-ever tally of 48 seats—one more than in the 2014 elections. The Congress managed to secure 37 seats, while the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) claimed two seats, and three independent candidates also emerged victorious.
Notably, the BJP contested 89 of the 90 seats in Haryana, choosing not to field a candidate in Sirsa, where its ally, Gopal Kanda, was the sitting MLA; however, Kanda lost his seat in the elections.
The INDIA bloc however, is set to form the first elected government in Jammu and Kashmir, winning 49 out of 90 seats in the assembly elections—the first since the abrogation of Article 370 five years ago. The National Conference (NC), the oldest regional party in J&K, emerged as a frontrunner, winning 42 seats and falling just six seats short of an outright majority.