Congress chief urges workers to identify local issues, not rely on ‘national leaders’ to win polls

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday urged party workers to identify local issues relevant to their states and not depend on “national issues and national leaders” when campaigning for Assembly elections.

At a meeting of the Congress Working Committee convened to deliberate the party’s recent electoral defeats in Maharashtra and Haryana, Kharge said that “tough decisions” would have to be taken in view of the results.

The party’s units in several states were not meeting expectations, Kharge said. “Our biggest need is to strengthen the organisation,” he added.

Kharge said that unemployment, inflation and economic inequality, along with demands for a caste census and social justice, were the “burning issues” in the country. “But this does not mean that we should forget the important local issues in the states where elections are being held,” Kharge said.

“For how long will you fight state elections on the basis of national issues and national leaders?” he asked. “It is important to understand the different issues of the states in detail and prepare a solid campaign strategy around them.”

The meeting was held days after the Assembly election results in Maharashtra on November 23. The Mahayuti alliance – comprising the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Shiv Sena group led by Eknath Shinde and the Nationalist Congress Party group led by...

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