From Our Special Correspondent

Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, May 22: A day after Congress President Sonia Gandhi asked partymen to remain united and true to its ideals as well as its time-tested principles to regain its lost glory, senior Congress leader S M Krishna on Sunday advised all Congress leaders and workers not to panic after the defeat in the just concluded five State Assembly polls and expressed confidence that Congress will bounce back soon.

The former Karnataka Chief Minister and former Union External Affairs Minister, has in a press statement said the party has emerged victorious in Puducherry and become the main opposition in West Bengal, Assam and Kerala.

The BJP won just 67 Assembly seats against the Congress 137 in five states, he said and felt the partymen need not lose heart over loss of power in Kerala and Assam.

At the same time, Krishna wondered as to what was the BJP gloating about as it had been rejected in four out of the five states, while Congress had retained respectable position and vote share in all the States that went to the polls.

“How it is possible for the BJP to achieve Congress-mukt Bharat?” he asked.

The former Chief Minister said the Congress was in similar a position to that of 1978 when the party was reduced to power in just Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The party emerged victorious in subsequent parliamentary and assembly elections and ruled the country for several years, he said.

Pointing out that Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Vice-President Rahul Gandhi were not solely responsible for the party’s defeats in five States, Krishna said. The Congress party went to the polls with collectively responsibility and how can two of the top leaders to be held responsible when the party loses?, he asked.

Instead of tackling poverty, unemployment, inflation, agrarian crisis and infrastructure problems, the ruling BJP at the Centre was only talking about “Congress-mukt Bharat”, he said and wondered how it would help the country or its people.

In the 2014 general elections, the Congress party had secured 13 crore votes while the BJP bagged 17 crore votes, he said.

The 137-year old party has pan-India presence, the former external affairs minister said and called upon the party workers to build the party from the grass-root level.