Punjab poll results signal 'endgame' for Congress, says Ashwini Kumar

New Delhi: Former Congress leader Ashwani Kumar, who quit the party ahead of the Punjab Assembly polls, on Thursday said the state election results signal the "endgame" for the grand old party and the emergence of an alternative political narrative in the country.

He said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) are the principal engines of this alternative political narrative and hoped that this is the beginning of a new and refreshing politics that is responsive to the sensitivities of the people.

According to trends available at 2 pm, the AAP was leading in 91 out of the 117 assembly seats in Punjab.

The trends indicated that the ruling Congress has been decimated in Punjab, while the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which contested the polls in alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), has failed to make much impact.

"The election results signal the endgame for the Congress as the natural party of governance. An alternative political narrative is emerging with the AAP and the TMC as its principal engines, with a ragtag Congress desperately pretending to be relevant, unless it undergoes a transformative change," Kumar said.

He said the changed mood of the nation is reflected in the emergence of the BJP as the dominant national party.

"Its (BJP's) triumphant return in UP and other states must compel us to revisit our understanding of the present societal reality in which the BJP is not seen as a communal or casteist party," he added.

Assembly election result trends showed the BJP heading towards government formation in four of the five states that went to polls.

The former Union minister further said, "Perhaps, it is time to anchor meaningful politics around the pressing issues of our time, moving away from obsessive negativism and personal animosities.

Kumar said the Punjab election results "signal the rejection of arrogance" and "politics of entitlement".

"Let this be the beginning of a new and refreshing politics responsive to sensitivities of the people," he said.

The results are historic as they represent a decisive voter assertion, Kumar said.

"Voters have opted for a new entrant where a clear choice was visible as in the case of Punjab, but have preferred the status quo where a credible and clear choice was not available as in UP," he said.

Kumar resigned from the Congress on February 15, after a 46-year association, saying he can best serve national causes outside the party fold.

Kumar had predicted an AAP wave in Punjab at the time of his resignation. He has not spelt out his future political plans or which party he will be joining.

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