Dikshit blames Maken for Delhi drubbing, Congress disagrees

Congress leader Sheila Dikshit Thursday blamed party campaign chief Ajay Maken for the washout in Delhi assembly election, but the party distanced itself from her statement which it termed "unfair".

"Maken was the Delhi campaign committee chairman. As such, he was responsible (for the loss in Delhi)," the three-time former chief minister said in an interview to news channel Times Now.

The Aam Admi Party bagged 67 seats in the 70-member assembly Tuesday. The Bharatiya Janata Party got just three seats while the Congress secured zero.

Dismissing the statement as Dikshit's "personal views", the Congress threw its weight behind Maken saying he "did his best for this (Delhi) election.

"If anybody saying anything otherwise, that is very unfair. The party doesn't endorse that view," Congress' Delhi in-charge P.C. Chacko told the channel.

"At a time when the party is already in crisis...party leaders should do soul searching instead of blaming each other and work for the revival of the party," he added.

Dikshit also held that the party's campaign in Delhi was not "vociferous" in publicizing the development work the Congress had done for national capital, adding that the message did not got out "effectively" enough.

Asked if the leadership of vice president Rahul Gandhi ought be reconsidered in view of the sixth election that the party has lost under his watch, she said he couldn't be held responsible for losses in assembly elections.

"The elections in Delhi were a state election. So how can you blame Rahul Gandhi? He is not directly responsible. It's the local leaders in the state, the presidents of the state Congress committee units are entrusted with the work of carrying on the election in the state," said Dikshit.