New Delhi: A pall of gloom enveloped the Congress headquarters at 24 Akbar Road on Friday as the Bihar Assembly election results delivered a crushing blow to the Mahagathbandhan, with the NDA surging past the 200-seat mark in the 243-member House.
The BJP emerged as the single largest party, leaving the Opposition alliance in tatters and Congress clinging to a mere six seats — a marginal improvement from its historic low of four in 2010.
Coinciding with Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth anniversary, the day began solemnly at Shanti Van, where party president Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and K C Venugopal paid floral tributes. However, top leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were conspicuously absent, having departed for an overseas trip on November 10. Other senior figures also stayed away, wrapping up the brief ceremony in minutes amid hurried responses to media queries.
The party’s old functional office, buzzing with anticipation in past polls, wore a deserted look. Media crews waited in vain for a press conference or bigwigs to address the debacle. A handful of spokespersons like Alok Sharma and Ragini Nayak appeared briefly, echoing morning TV debates, but no major leader emerged. Even a group of Rahul-Priyanka supporters, arriving with sweets, firecrackers, and drummers, left disappointed as trends turned adverse.
The Congress blamed the Election Commission and alleged BJP collusion. This reticence starkly contrasts with past responses: in 2010, Sonia Gandhi personally boosted morale at headquarters, and after the 2014 Lok Sabha rout, she and Rahul faced the press. Today’s silence suggests the verdict has jolted the grand old party to its core, exposing deep vulnerabilities.