Punjab Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Sunil Jakhar today said there was a "failure" on part of the party's state leadership in not being able to cash in on the anti-incumbency against Akali-BJP regime during the Lok Sabha polls.
Jakhar said the situation would have been worse for Congress had the party not announced the candidature of Captain Amarinder Singh from Amritsar.
Jakhar, who was present at a meeting of Congress leaders at the residence of former Union minister Ashwani Kumar here, was asked by the reporters if the Lok Sabha results reflected a failure of the party's state leadership to which he replied in affirmative.
"Yes. We cannot even hide behind that there was a Modi wave in the country or whatever. In Punjab, it was definitely an anti Akali-BJP thing. It was virtually an uprising against the government," he said.
When asked if there was a need to address the issues concerning the party, he said, "This has to be taken head-on even if it means hard decisions. Because when I say leadership failure, I have been a part of that leadership. So I am saying we have failed. I am not talking about anybody else, I am also talking about myself."
Of the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab, the Congress only won three with even former Union ministers Ambika Soni and Preneet Kaur losing.
However, the party's candidate from the high profile Amritsar seat, former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh won his contest against BJP stalwart Arun Jaitley.
"Had Captain sahab not entered the election fray, I would have said this was a no election so far as Congress was concerned in Punjab," Jakhar said.
Jakhar had himself contested the Lok Sabha election from the Ferozepur seat and lost.
