Maha poll drubbing a wake up call for Cong

STILL smarting from the shock defeat in Haryana, the near-wipeout in Maharashtra proved to be yet another punch for the Congress, which is struggling to keep afloat as a national force.

- PREETHA NAIR

While the resounding victory of the Maha Yuti reinforced the BJP's dominance in the political landscape, the Congress again failed to lead a united fight against the saffron force.

Though Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said the party would analyse the "unexpected" Maharashtra results in detail, questions are being raised about its failure to adopt a coherent strategy and narrative.

Observers attribute the disappointing performance of the party to Gandhi's focus on caste census and caste-based reservation, which failed to resonate with the electorates in Haryana and J&K.

In Maharashtra and Jharkhand, the Congress was on a sticky wicket during seat talks with allies after losing Haryana to the BJP for the third straight time.