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Saarang Hero Username: Saarang Post Number: 15540 Registered: 06-2012 Posted From: 206.29.176.75 Rating: N/A |
http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/as-congress-gushes-over-prash ant-kishor-he-could-join-the-party-sources-1671874 Through the inquest of the Congress' debacle in Uttar Pradesh - one of three states that he managed - Mr Kishor has not commented on either his own or the party's missteps, or what relationship they will have in the future. This morning, sources close to him said that over the next two weeks, Mr Kishor will consult with top members of his team - the data-crunching, election start-up called I-PAC or the Indian Political Action Committee - to explore whether any future association with the Congress should be as "an insider" - a member of the party, as opposed to an adjunct position, however senior. However, top aides at I-PAC said later in the day - after NDTV reported the story - that "even speculation of him joining the Congress is completely premature." Mr Kishor, whose antipathy for interviews is well-established, has said in the past that he has no wish to enter politics. But sources say that the Uttar Pradesh Project has taught him that the a section of the Congress used his status as a consultant both to curb his influence and to brand him as a big reason for its worst-ever result in India's politically most strategic state - it won just seven of 403 seats. Any future assignments, said Mr Kishor's aides on the condition of anonymity, would need to guarantee him the sort of access, time and input that allowed him to chart a winning campaign for Captain Amarinder Singh in Punjab. On Twitter today, the Captain, who brought the Congress back to power in Punjab after 10 years, purveying the party with its sole sweet spot in the recent elections, thanked Mr Kishor. Sources in Mr Kishor's team say that he continues to enjoy the confidence of Congress bosses Rahul Gandhi and his sister, Priyanka. As the strategist surveys his options, the election in Gujarat will be a crucial factor. The BJP has ruled Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state for 19 years uninterrupted. The Congress is, like in many other states, a spent force in Gujarat. And the emphatic defeat of Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party or AAP in Punjab significantly depletes its chances of serving as a formidable challenger. |