Several other Congress leaders expressed their unwillingness to contest the general elections.
Congress candidate Sudarshan Rawat has withdrawn himself from contesting Lok Sabha elections from Rajasthan’s Rajsamand. Though he cited personal reasons from not contesting the polls, yet it has obviously upset Congress.
In a letter to the party state president, Rawat expressed his inability to contest the Lok Sabha elections, which he had communicated to the top leaders of the state several times.
He mentioned that, despite the historic development works, he did not have the moral right to contest the elections just four months after a defeat in the last assembly election. He also highlighted that it was not logical for him to contest without any strategic preparation.
Additionally, Rawat was scheduled to be on a foreign tour for business purposes during the next two months, which conflicted with the election campaign schedule. He suggested that a youth should be made a candidate instead. Rawat accused a top leader of Mewar of keeping the party leadership in the dark about his disagreement to contest the elections.
Rawat is not alone recently. Rohan Gupta, Congress national spokesperson, opted to withdraw his candidacy from the Ahmedabad East Lok Sabha seat due to personal reasons.
He emphasised that his decision was driven by his father’s health condition rather than political motives. Gupta stated: “I fulfilled all responsibilities given to me by the party in the last 15 years. Even before my candidacy was announced, I had begun planning how to contest the elections well. I was never overconfident about winning. It was a difficult decision to drop my candidacy. It was my personal decision due to my father’s health condition, not a political one.” Gupta even resigned from the Congress party, citing “constant humiliation” and “character assassination” by one of the senior leaders connected to the communications department of the party.
While the candidacy of Sunil Sharma from Jaipur Rural Lok Sabha constituency has been changed by Congress itself. Actually, his association with The Jaipur Dialogues, a platform critical of the Congress on social media, sparked controversy. Sharma denied any direct affiliation with the organisation but was often invited by them as a panellist to present the Congress’ view. Following criticism, the party replaced him with former Rajasthan minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas. Himachal Pradesh Congress president Pratibha Singh, in a media statement, denied contesting election. Similarly, Delhi Congress leader Arvinder Lovely has declined to contest elections several times.
The activities of the opposition raise concerns about their preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. On one hand, the leaders are asking not to contest the election from the I.N.D.I.A bloc while the BJP is in an election mood. Also, Congress has not even released candidate lists for several states, including Delhi, where its alliance partner AAP and the BJP have already released their lists well in advance.
A party insider said Congress is taking proactive steps in releasing the list of candidates as they fear the BJP may try to switch sides and come to the BJP or support the BJP candidate.
According to a psephologist, the withdrawal of candidates within a political party signals internal discord, hinting at disagreements or dissatisfaction within the party ranks. This internal strife also paints a picture of disunity, weakening the party’s image in the eyes of the public. Consequently, voters interpret these withdrawals as a lack of confidence in the party’s leadership, eroding trust and potentially influencing their voting decisions.
Moreover, frequent withdrawals suggest a diminishing presence of the party in certain regions, which could impact its overall electoral prospects.