The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Sunday charged the Congress with ”lack of seriousness” in posing a credible challenge to the BJP, citing its failure to get its act together in Punjab, which it rules, and insistence on punching above its weight in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
RJD national vice president Shivanand Tiwary, a key aide of party supremo Lalu Prasad, also blamed the junior ally for his party’s inability to form a government in Bihar despite winning the maximum number of seats in the 2020 assembly elections.
Tiwary said the Congress initially wanted to contest 100 seats of the 243-strong assembly, but settled for 70, ”a number, we were given to understand, was approved by Sonia Gandhi herself”.
He alleged that the Congress’ campaign, however, left much to be desired; pointing out Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s ”complete absence” and Rahul Gandhi taking time off for ”not more than half a dozen rallies” in the standalone elections.
”In sharp contrast, Narendra Modi was personally carrying out a blitzkrieg campaign though he is the Prime Minister. Can the top Congress leaders say they were busier than him?” Tiwary said.
Notably, the Congress had finished with a tally of less than 20 seats, clocking the worst strike rate among constituents of the Grand Alliance which is helmed by RJD and includes CPI, CPI(M) and CPI(ML).
Tiwary was miffed over contention of Congress leaders in Bihar that by dumping it in assembly by-polls last year and the forthcoming elections for legislative council, the RJD had become the BJP’s ”B team”.
”Lalu Prasad needs no certificates. It was only he who had the gumption to arrest L K Advani and stop the Rath Yatra in its tracks,” said Tiwary.
After the RJD’s de facto leader Tejashwi Yadav made it clear that the party will contest 23 seats in the Vidhan Parishad, leaving one for the Left, the Congress has said it will field its own candidates for all 24.
Tiwary said the Congress had done the same in by-polls for two assembly seats ”and it seems happy over the RJD’s defeat, unmindful of the fact that its own candidate in Tarapur polled fewer votes than he had earlier done as an Independent”.
”The Congress pulled us down in Bihar in 2020 and did the same to Akhilesh Yadav in 2017, when it forced him to part with over 100 seats for Uttar Pradesh assembly elections,” the RJD leader said.
The elections saw the BJP sweep UP with more than 300 seats in the 403-strong assembly while the Congress put up its worst-ever performance, with a single-digit tally.
Tiwary also pointed towards the situation in Punjab, one of the very few states which the Congress rules.
”They made Navjot Singh Sidhu, who has been imported from the BJP, the state president. He has thrown the Congress into turmoil,” said the RJD leader in an obvious reference to the exit of former chief minister Amarinder Singh and the events that have followed.
Tiwary reminded the Congress that Lalu Prasad was ”the only leader who had stood up for Sonia Gandhi while she was facing stiff opposition from left, right and centre over her foreign origin”.
”We are committed to supporting the Congress whenever it seeks to form a government at the Centre. Its lack of seriousness has, however, soured relations (man khatta ho gaya hai)”, the RJD leader added.
