Sheila Dikshit after Congress is routed in Delhi: We should have won

File photo of former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit. Pic/AFP

New Delhi: Former Delhi chief minister and Delhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit on Thursday conceded her party's defeat in Lok Sabha polls in the national capital, terming the loss "very disappointing", and congratulated the BJP for its spectacular performance.

BJP candidates were leading over their rivals on all the seven seats in Delhi by margins ranging from 1-5 lakh votes. "It is very disappointing, we should have won," the former chief minister told PTI.

Dikshit lost by over 3.63 lakh votes against her rival and Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari in North East Delhi constituency. She said Delhi Congress leaders will meet in coming days and discuss steps needed in view of the grand old party's dismal performance in the election.

Congress, which trailed behind AAP in Delhi in elections since 2014, took consolation in the fact that its candidates on four seats managed to force Arvind Kejriwal-led party to the third place in this poll. "That is a very good thing, we welcome it," she said.

This is the first time since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls that the Congress managed to pip the AAP to the third spot in any election in the national capital in terms of vote share.
All the BJP candidates fielded on seven seats of the national capital won.

Cong workers say lack of communication hurt party

Lack of communication with the leadership and parachute candidates were detrimental for the Congress, party workers said at its headquarters here, as Lok Sabha election trends spelt debacle for the grand old party.

The mood was sombre at the Congress's Akbar Road office as trends showed that the BJP was set to return to power as it won 239 seats and led in 64 of the 542 seats that went to polls, while the Congress trailed far behind with 52.

Sitting under a tree at the headquarters, workers discussed the party's performance and the repercussions of the poll results. Hari Babu Kaushik, a 72-year-old Congress worker from Mathura, said the lack of communication with the party leadership is the main reason that led to the defeat of the party.

"I have been with the Congress even when Rahul Gandhi (party chief) and Priyanka Gandhi (general secretary) were not born. "But, I never got an opportunity to communicate with the leadership. They have 'Z plus' security. It is us on the ground who are humiliated," the retired professor said.
"Despite our efforts we cannot meet Congress leaders," said another worker.

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates