Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee(UPCC) president Nirmal Khatri, who is no mood to quit the post taking morale responsibility of the defeat, accepted his failure but said that he has many grudges and several reasons to say behind the debacle which he will share it only with the top bosses in the Party.
“We were swept in the Modi wave and as a leader of the party in UP, I take all the responsibilities,” he told media persons here on Wednesdaybut also gave his mind that he was not going to quit. Refusing to reveal any reason behind the debacle, Khatri went on claim that he too had many things to tell which resulted into dismal performance of the Party.
``I too had many grudges and various reasons are also going in my mind which led to our poor performance but I am not interested to disclose it before the media but I will definitely put it when I met Soniaji or Rahul Gandhi to discuss on the Party’s debacle”, he quipped just before leaving for New Delhi on Wednesday evening. Sources said that very soon, Khatri would disband State Congress Committee and would re-organise the unit to appoint more of his loyalists. He is also likely to wind-up the zonal system in the Party which failed miserably to give any push to the Party’s fortune.
Khatri further said that he would also convene a meeting of all the loosing candidates of the lok Sabha next week to discuss upon the reasons behind the defeat and they will also ask to give suggestions for immediate remedy for the party.” The unprecedented results has certainly demoralized the party’s rank and file but it is the need of the time to forget the past and start a new beginning,” he said.
Khatri said that starting with the meeting of the loosing candidates, party will go for series of meetings in the coming days to rejuvenate the cadre at the grassroot level. Congress has won just two seats— Rae Bareli and Amethi that of Party president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the lok Sabha elections. Khatri said that party leaders in UP would be invited for all the meetings including the former Union ministers who have lost the elections.
UPCC president Nirmal Khatri paid visit to State party headquarters here after a gap of over two months on Wednesday. Earlier Khatri attended an all-religion meeting at the party office here on the death anniversary late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. UP Congress president , who came on the fourth spot in Faizabad lok Sabha seat, did not visit his state party office for past two months and remained in Faizabad. He even did not campaigned for any other candidate in UP. Meanwhile some party leaders in lucknow were annoyed with the role of the State president and they have started demanding his resignation holding him responsible for the party’s debacle in the state. But none came out in open to oppose Khatri.