New Delhi: After a rout in the Assembly elections, Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat tendered his resignation to Governor K.K. Paul on Saturday.
Widely regarded for his political sagacity that helped him emerge unscathed from the worst of circumstances, Ms Rawat failed to fulfil the party expectations, and the Congress was reduced to 11 seats. "I take all the blame for the performance of the party. There were flaws in my leadership, which is why the Congress could not perform well," said Mr Rawat, after meeting the Governor.
The political acumen of the 69-year-old leader was widely appreciated when the President's Rule was revoked in the state. He was reinstated as the chief minister following his victory in a Supreme Court-monitored floor test, in which MLAs who revolted against him were not allowed to vote.
Insiders wanted Mr Rawat to dissolve the Assembly and go in for snap polls, saying sympathy votes for the party could help Ms Rawat win his second term.
The party got into trouble when senior leaders started defecting.
Prominent Dalit face Yashpal Arya left Congress with his son and joined the BJP. Soon, many others followed the footsteps and later, 13 party leaders joined the saffron party.
The party lost major faces in the Terai and Garhwal regions of the hill state. It neither had a Brahmin face in the Kumaon region nor a Dalit face in the Terai areas.
Sensing the grim chances of victory, Ms Rawat left didn't contest from his old seat in Kumaon and fought from two seats (Terai and Garhwal) - and lost from both the constituencies.
Another factor that led to the Congress defeat was ticket distribution, which forced many - after suffering a setback of losing many stalwarts to the BJP - leaders to quit the grand old party. Many of them fought as independents against the Congress nominees.
The battle between Harish Rawat and state chief Kishor Upadhyay also harmed the party's prospect. Mr Upadhyay did not want to contest elections, while Mr Rawat was insistent, and even changed his seat that led to rebellion in the constituency. Though Mr Upadhyay denies any rift and said he respects the people's verdict.
