Despite losses, Cong says no to projecting chief ministerial candidates

The Congress may have set up a committee under Defence Minister AK Antony to devise a plan to revive the party but there is one point on which it will not rethink "" not projecting a chief ministerial candidate despite the string of recent defeats in assembly polls.

The emphasis on this point is significant as after the debacle in the high-profile Assembly election in Gujarat last year, the party had identified the absence of a charismatic leader like BJP's Narendra Modi as one of the reason for the loss. Also, after last month's Karnataka poll loss, it was felt that too many aspirants for chief ministership confused voters.

 

Says Digvijay Singh, one of the members of the Antony Committee: "How can a chief minister be projected before elections? The leader of the House has to be decided by the legislators. This has always been the practice of the party."