Congress leaders discuss party's strategy for assembly polls in Gujarat, HP
New Delhi, Apr 18: Top Congress leaders met at party president Sonia Gandhi's residence on Monday to deliberate on the party's strategy for the assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh slated for later this year.
During the strategy group meeting that lasted over four hours, the leaders discussed threadbare various facets of the party's electoral strategy.
The meeting came days after poll strategist Prashant Kishor gave a detailed presentation before top party leaders at Gandhi's residence.
While Sonia Gandhi attended the strategy group meeting for some time, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi was not present.
Senior Congress leaders K C Venugopal, Ambika Soni, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Mukul Wasnik, Jairam Ramesh, P Chidambaram and Randeep Singh Surjewala were among those present.
Sources said the purpose of the meeting was to plan in advance for the assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh later this year and in Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in 2023.
Kishore was not present at today's meeting. However, he met the Congress president separately and left her house late in the evening, the sources said.
The Congress has suffered a string of defeats in recent assembly elections.
Kishor had met the Congress chief on Saturday and made a detailed presentation on the party's revival strategy and the way forward for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Venugopal had indicated about the formation of the group that would discuss Kishor's plan for the upcoming assembly and parliamentary elections and give suggestions and its report to the Congress president for further action.
Sources said Kishor had given this long-term strategy for the Congress' revival before the top party leadership.
With an eye on the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he is understood to have told the leadership to focus on 365-370 parliamentary seats alone and strengthen its base in these constituencies.
Kishor has suggested that the party contest alone in a few state assembly elections where it is strong and has remained either on the top or in the second position in previous elections.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengal polls: TMC seeks removal of Bhabanipur poll official, alleges proximity with BJP's Suvendu
_vb_44.jpeg)
Kolkata (PTI): The TMC sought the immediate removal of the returning officer for the Bhabanipur assembly constituency in West Bengal, alleging he has proximity with BJP candidate Suvendu Adhikari.
In a representation submitted to Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal on Friday, the ruling party raised objections to the appointment of RO for the Bhabanipur seat in southern Kolkata.
The party alleged that the returning officer has a “documented and close association” with Adhikari, who is contesting from Bhabanipur against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Adhikari is also in the electoral fray from Nandigram in Purba Medinipur district.
According to the complaint, the RO had earlier served as block development officer in Nandigram-II, where his proximity to Adhikari was allegedly visible in public engagements.
The TMC claimed that such an association creates a “reasonable apprehension of bias” and "compromises the neutrality" required for conducting elections.
The party also questioned the RO's current posting as additional director of land records, stating that the position is typically held by more senior officers.
The TMC alleged that his appointment to the role, particularly ahead of elections, raises concerns of “preferential and motivated deployment”.
Emphasising the critical role of a returning officer, the TMC said the official is responsible for key electoral processes, including nomination scrutiny, conduct of polling and declaration of results, and therefore must be “unimpeachably neutral”.
Citing Article 324 of the Constitution and provisions of the Representation of the People Act, the Trinamool Congress argued that the Election Commission is duty-bound to ensure free and fair polls by appointing officers without any perceived bias.
On 24th March, we formally wrote to the Chief Election Commissioner and CEO, West Bengal, flagging serious concerns over the appointment of Surajit Roy as Returning Officer for Bhabanipur.
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) April 3, 2026
We presented clear evidence of his close ties with Suvendu Adhikari from his days as BDO,… pic.twitter.com/i6Rybh4xDt
The party also referred to the Model Code of Conduct, which mandates administrative neutrality, and alleged that the RO's continuation violates these principles.
The TMC representation noted that the Election Commission had earlier sought a panel of three alternative officers from the state government, following a complaint lodged on March 24.
While the state complied, no decision has yet been taken to replace the RO, the letter, signed by senior TMC leaders Shashi Panja, Aroop Biswas, Baiswanor Chattopadhyay, claimed.
Calling the situation "constitutionally untenable" and "electorally dangerous", the TMC urged the EC to take "immediate, reasoned and transparent action to ensure the integrity of the electoral process".
