Patna, Nov 27 (IANS) Following the Congress party’s crushing defeat in the Bihar Assembly elections, senior leaders held a high-level review meeting in Delhi on Thursday. Party President Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Ajay Maken, and several top leaders were present during the discussions, where Bihar Congress candidates and state leaders presented their assessments.

All 61 Congress candidates from Bihar were invited to the meeting.

After the review, Bihar Congress president Rajesh Ram and state in-charge Krishna Allavaru addressed the media, alleging that the Election Commission acted in favour of the ruling NDA, which they claimed contributed significantly to the Grand Alliance’s defeat.

Ram alleged that large-scale “vote chori” took place during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process conducted by the Election Commission.

He further claimed that the ruling NDA dispensed financial assistance to voters and Jeevika Didis, many of whom were allegedly deployed at polling stations to influence voters.

Ram accused the ruling coalition of “rigging” the election with administrative support.

“Despite all the favouritism by the Election Commission, the vote share of the Grand Alliance — especially the Congress — increased,” Ram said.

He added: “All 61 candidates presented their views in today’s review meeting. Everyone stated that vote theft and the financial assistance given by the ruling parties during the election were the primary reasons for the Grand Alliance’s defeat.”

The Congress high command has asked all candidates, as well as the six newly elected MLAs, to submit detailed reports explaining the reasons for the loss, including constituency-level weaknesses and organisational shortcomings.

The leadership is assessing whether local factors contributed to the defeat or whether the broader campaign strategy itself was flawed.

Former Bihar Congress president Akhilesh Prasad Singh said: “Everyone was heard constituency-wise. Corrective steps will be taken to fix shortcomings. We feel everyone left satisfied.”

Congress leader Shakeel Ahmed Khan added: “There was a detailed discussion. Senior leaders shared their views on how the voting pattern emerged, how the NDA won, and what needs to be done next. Many had applied for tickets, but only a few can get them — so there’s no point in blaming anyone.”

The party views this review exercise as critical for recalibrating its future strategy in Bihar.

–IANS

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