“Who will Congress blame now?”: JD(U)’s Sanjay Jha takes dig at Congress over ballot-based MLC polls

Patna (Bihar) [India], October 29 (ANI): JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha on Thursday backed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks on Congress’ performance in the recent MLC elections, saying voters had rejected the opposition party in elections conducted through ballot papers. 
Jha said elections were held for 28 seats across four states and the NDA won 16 seats, questioning whom Congress would blame for its performance when ballot papers were used.
“He has said the right thing because elections were held for 28 seats and the NDA won 16 seats, and everyone knows what happened to the Congress in this election. PM Modi has asked the right question that this was an election by ballot, so the people have rejected Congress everywhere, so who will they blame now? This election was by ballot, and the people have completely rejected you (Congress),” he told reporters here.
Echoing Jha’s remarks, JD(U) leader Rajiv Ranjan said the Congress’ performance in ballot-based elections raised questions about its approach, adding that the party needed to strengthen its grassroots presence and address internal discontent.
“It is quite clear, given that the party (Congress) has been advocating for a return to ballot papers, that even in elections conducted via ballot, the voters have decisively rejected the Congress. One must wonder, then, what strategy they intend to pursue now,” Ranjan said.
He further said the Congress needed to address public concerns and resolve internal issues to improve its position.
“In reality, unless the Congress becomes active at the grassroots level by addressing issues that truly concern the public, and unless it implements a phased plan to resolve the internal discontent within its various units, the situation will only continue to deteriorate further,” he added.
Amid this, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh called for an end to MLC elections held in graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies, alleging that money plays a major role in the electoral process. He also questioned how candidates are selected.
"The candidates that get elected in such elections (one with graduates' and teachers' constituencies), you ask them about the exchange of money and how candidates are brought. This is an election of money. Such elections should be stopped," Singh told ANI.
The senior Congress leader clarified that the opposition’s demand for paper ballots was intended for direct popular elections, not MLC polls that follow a preferential voting system, where votes are counted in multiple rounds before the final result is declared.
This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a jab at the Congress party following the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) clean sweep in Karnataka Legislative Council elections, winning all four seats.
In a post on X, PM Modi said, "MLC elections in 28 seats across 4 big states – Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar and Karnataka. Elections were held using ballot papers. Guess how many seats Congress won?"
The Prime Minister’s sarcastic post comes as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies recorded strong performances, including a 4-0 sweep by the NDA in the Karnataka Legislative Council polls, while the Congress suffered significant setbacks. (ANI)