Facing attack from a section of the State BJP and having received a reported rap on his knuckles from the national leadership for his party's poor show in Bengal, State Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari has refused to take responsibility for the BJP's uninspiring performance in the recently concluded parliamentary elections. Adhikri who has been held responsible for the electoral defeat by many a senior State leaders including former State party president Dilip Ghosh said he never interfered in the organizational matters.
Many senior State leaders had earlier accused him of meddling too much in the organizational affairs and of arbitrarily choosing candidates like Rekha Patra of Sandeshkhali for Basirhat seat
and Rajmata Amrita Roy for Krishnagar seat — both of which were lost by huge margins.
Refuting the charges Adhikari on Thursday said that he had never interfered in the matters oforganization and that he alone cannot be held responsible for the party's loss.
"I have never interfered in the party's organisational matters … save perhaps for the fact that I visited areas where I was invited to attend public rallies and programmes … I only gave my opinion of candidates in my own East Midnapore district when I was asked to do so and the party won there," Adhikari said holding the organizational weakness responsible for the defeat.
"We have not been able to counter the Trinamool Congress organizationally ... which is one reason of the loss," he said alleging "there are some leaders who take credit when the party performs well but blames me when there is a defeat."
Interestingly the senior saffron leader made his options clear on the issue of organizational duty
saying that neither had he meddled in the organizational matters nor he had any desire to take organizational responsibilities.
Adhikari who had gone to Delhi for a brief period to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Prime NMinister Narendra Modi was reportedly sent back by the national leadership with an instruction to contain the party leaders including MLAs from joining the TMC particularly ahead of the upcoming Assembly by-elections to four seats.
This at a time when five panchayats controlled by the BJP in Coochbehar district went to the TMC after several of their members joined the ruling outfit. The BJP's Nishith Pramanik lost the Cooch Behar seat.
"We cannot say that the BJP has done all that bad in the elections if we consider the fact that we have been leading in 92 Assembly segments which is an achievement."
