Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Nov 28: Discontent within the Bihar Congress burst into the open during the party’s first post-election review meeting in the capital, where several candidates blamed faulty ticket allocation, alleged selling of tickets and internal sabotage for the party’s dismal performance in the recent Assembly polls.
The four-hour, closed-door meeting at the AICC headquarters was chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi. Notably, K C Venugopal, the party’s general secretary (organisation), and AICC Bihar observer Krishna Allavaru were absent, raising eyebrows within the ranks.
The review comes weeks after the Congress faced a severe setback in Bihar, winning only six of the 61 seats it contested. According to sources, the six newly elected MLAs held one-on-one discussions with Kharge and Gandhi, while losing candidates met the leadership in groups to outline what went wrong at the ground level.
Araria MLA Abidur Rahman confirmed that he urged the high command to act against those he believes derailed the party’s prospects.
“I have submitted the names of the leaders responsible,” Rahman said. “I won’t disclose them now, but there have been instances of ticket selling, and many deserving party workers were ignored.”
He added that he himself — one of the senior-most leaders from Seemanchal — was initially denied a ticket, a sign of the perceived arbitrariness that angered cadres.
Sources present at the meeting said many candidates pointed to discrepancies in ticket distribution, factional infighting, and ‘friendly fights’ that split the vote. Several also criticised the decision to field turncoats who had joined the party shortly before the election, arguing that long-time workers with strong grassroots connections were sidelined.
Leaders complained that the lack of coordination within the state unit, amplified by mixed signals from the central leadership, left the organisation unprepared and demoralised on the ground.
Following the discussions, Venugopal posted on X, alleging that the elections themselves were marred by irregularities.
He wrote: “Today’s review highlighted how SIR enabled targeted voter deletions and dubious additions, how blatant cash bribery under the MMRY scheme was used to influence voters even at polling stations, and how identical victory margins across seats showed a pattern no independent EC would ignore.”
The Congress leadership is expected to compile detailed constituency-wise reports before initiating corrective measures as it attempts to rebuild its floundering presence in Bihar.