Rahul Gandhi

How does a party that has ruled Delhi for 15 years—and the Centre for two successive terms—perform so dismally in an election? The Congress failed to win a single seat in the Delhi Assembly. Of the 70 Congress candidates who contested, 62 did not get even 15 per cent of the votes cast in their constituencies and had to forfeit their security deposits.

Since last year’s General Election, the party has been so embarrassingly routed in so many states that some of its members have started speaking out against its top leadership openly. Its traditional vote banks have gone en bloc to other parties like the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Yet the Congress leadership—and specifically Rahul Gandhi—has refused to accept any responsibility for its collapse as a force.

The likes of Ajay Maken, the Congress face for the Delhi polls, and Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee President Arvinder Singh Lovely, have resigned, taking responsibility for the wipe-out. But Rahul and his mother Sonia Gandhi have observed a studied silence. Asked if Rahul was going to hold himself accountable too, Maken said, “This result has nothing to do with party leadership.” The Congress needs to think hard to avert electoral extinction. It has less time than it imagines.

CongressDelhi Assembly election 2015Rahul GandhiSonia GandhiVice president