New Delhi, October 22
The Congress got a shot in the arm today when it notched up victories in Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh Assembly polls but the celebrations were somewhat subdued as the party’s performance in Haryana was clearly not up to expectations.

n Set to return to power with ally NCP for third term in Maharashtra n Emerges victorious in Arunachal Pradesh for second time

Continuing its winning streak five months after its success in the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) combine returned to power for the third consecutive term in Maharashtra with 144 seats in a 288-member Assembly. The party also raced to a spectacular win in Arunachal Pradesh for the second time, winning 42 of the 60 seats in this north-eastern state. These victories will strengthen Congress’s position at the Centre, giving it a clear edge over its allies, especially the NCP which has been forced to accede to its partner’s dominant role in Maharashtra.

Congress workers celebrate the party’s victory in assembly polls in three states, in Mumbai. — PTI

In contrast to the other two states, the outcome of the Haryana elections proved disappointing for the Congress. The party was hoping for a sweeping victory after it won nine of the ten Lok Sabha seats.

The Congress fell six short of the half-way mark in the 90-member Assembly despite a divided opposition. In its scramble to make up the numbers, the party is in touch with the seven Independent candidates and expelled Congress leader Bhajan Lal.

While the Maharashtra results have ensured that low-key, non-controversial incumbent Chief Minister Ashok Chavan will continue in this post, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is in deep trouble as his detractors have stepped up their campaign for a change in leadership. With INLD leader Om Prakash Chautala garnering a substantial chunk of the Jat vote, the non-Jat lobby in the Congress is pressing for Hooda’s removal. In this connection, Union tourism minister and Hooda-baiter Selja’s evening meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi assumes significance.

Selja and other state leaders like Birendra Singh, Kiran Chaudhary and Rao Inderjit Singh had raised a banner of revolt against Hooda in the run-up to the elections but to little avail. Having failed to convince the party leadership then, his detractors have lost no time in swinging into action against him.

“Hooda has no moral right to continue. He was projected as a Jat leader but failed to get the Jat vote. He was given a free hand in the selection of candidates and he took all personal credit for the government’s achievements ...he has to go,” declared a senior state leader.

Congress leaders admitted internal squabbles had cost them dearly in Haryana while Hooda had become overconfident and complacent. “After the Lok Sabha results, there was a section in the party which was determined to deny Hooda a second term,” remarked a senior AICC leader. Congress spokesperson Janaradan Dwivedi refused to comment on this issue. “It’s true we got less seats than we had expected in Haryana... the party will analyse the reasons for its performance” was all he said.

As the party agonised over the Haryana results, it drew satisfaction from its Maharashtra victory which was being attributed primarily to the disarray in the opposition ranks, the Raj Thackeray factor, the smooth coordination between the state party unit and the state government and its relentless election campaign which ensured that the issues which dominated in the Lok Sabha elections continued to prevail.