Cong high command meets leaders from Bihar, J-K, Ladakh, Punjab to discuss LS poll strategy

The Congress high command held a series of meetings with party leaders from Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Punjab on Tuesday to discuss the strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi and General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal along with other central leaders met the delegations from the states and Union Territories.

Around 40 leaders of the Congress' Bihar unit, including its chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh and newly appointed state in-charge Mohan Prakash, attended the meeting.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, the Bihar Congress chief said the RJD-JDU-Congress-Left alliance will fight the Lok Sabha polls together and a final decision on seat sharing will be taken in the meeting of the alliance committee of Congress which is scheduled for December 29.

Asked how many seats the Congress would fight on, Singh said they would be flexible in seat sharing. ''One or two seats may go here or there... It is not a problem. Last time we fought in alliance with RJD and Left parties. This time JD(U) is also there,'' he said.

According to sources, Rahul Gandhi sought to know from the leaders ways to strengthen the party in Bihar.

In a post on X, Kharge said, ''The Grand Alliance government in Bihar is working firmly as per the expectations of the people of Bihar. We are committed to social justice. For the progress, prosperity and peace of Bihar, every Congress worker is ready to reach out to the people and live up to the aspirations of the people of Bihar.'' In 2019, out of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, the RJD was given 20, the Congress got nine, the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) fought on five, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Hum) and VIP fought three each and CPI-ML got one seat from the RJD quota.

The Congress won one seat, while the JD(U), which was in alliance with BJP at that time, won 16. The BJP won 17 seats, and the Lok Janshakti Party six.

The party's high command also held a meeting with leaders from Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Jammu and Kashmir has five Lok Sabha seats and Ladakh has one.

After the meeting, the Congress' Jammu and Kashmir in-charge said they discussed ways to strengthen the party in the Union territory, and the strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls as well as the assembly polls, whenever they are held.

''We will win all five seats in Jammu and Kashmir and one in Ladakh, there is no doubt about it,'' Solanki said.

Kharge, in another post, on X, said, ''We hope to see full statehood restored to Jammu and Kashmir soon. Modi govt has left no stone unturned in betraying its people.'' ''PM Modi's clean chit to China, post-Galwan has endangered our national security and strategic interests. We are also concerned about the rise in terror attacks and targeted killings of innocent people,'' he said and also expressed concern over the ''rise in terror attacks and targeted killings of innocent people in Jammu and Kashmir''.

Kharge added that the ''people of Ladakh are unitedly demanding safeguards for the tribal people of the region under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. But the Modi Govt has time and again, deceived them''. ''The people of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh want their life return to normalcy and that's the message they gave to Rahul Gandhi during the Bharat Jodo Yatra,'' the Congress president said on X.

The Congress high command also held a meeting with leaders from Punjab.

According to sources, some state leaders shared their views on the Aam Aadmi Party being a part of the opposition INDIA bloc and it was decided that the Congress' central leadership will take a final call on the matter.

Some leaders from Punjab also complained about Navjot Singh Sidhu. Rahul Gandhi said indiscipline in any form will not be tolerated.

Interacting with reporters after the meeting, Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said the strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections was mainly discussed in the meeting. ''The leadership did not ask us about alliance or seat sharing,'' he added.

Commenting on the meeting with Punjab leaders on X, Kharge said preparations for the Lok Sabha polls were discussed. ''Our unwavering support to the people of Punjab and to their aspirations for progress and welfare continue with renewed vigour,'' he added.

Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi along with West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury met former leader of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha Binay Tamang and ex-Kalimpong MLA Harka Bahadur Chetri.

The meetings come as the INDIA bloc parties in their meeting held last week decided to conclude seat-sharing agreements soon.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)