Prashant Kishor Raining on Congress's Lakhimpur Parade Signals Their Ties are in 'Cold Storage'

In a message for the Congress, poll strategist Prashant Kishor on Friday said those looking for a quick revival of the grand old party-led opposition following the Lakhimpur Kheri incident are in for a big disappointment as there are no quick fix solutions to the “deep-rooted problems” of the party. Kishor’s tweet comes in the backdrop of days of speculation that he was in talks with the Gandhi family and was set to join the Congress.

At the same time, the Trinamool Congress’ Uttar Pradesh Twitter has also become extra active, two moves that have interested political circles. However, both sides claim their reactions were standalone.

“People looking for a quick, spontaneous revival of GOP led opposition based on Lakhimpur Kheri incident are setting themselves up for a big disappointment,” Kishor said on his Twitter handle. “Unfortunately there are no quick fix solutions to the deep-rooted problems and structural weakness of GOP,” he said.

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At the moment Kishor seems to not have very high thoughts about Congress after their last meeting together. Sources told CNN-News18 that some G23 (group of Congress members who wrote a ‘dissenting’ letter to Sonia Gandhi pushing for party reform) were approaching the TMC too, but that since Kishor is close to Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, he may have told her taking anyone from the G23 group did not make any sense. This indicates the continuing sourness of Kishor’s relations with the Congress.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bupesh Baghel, hitting out at Kishor’s tweet, said: “People looking for a “national” alternative based on poaching INC functionaries, who can’t win even their own seats, are in for a big disappointment. Unfortunately, to become a national alternative, deep-rooted and concerted efforts are needed, and there are no quick-fix solutions.”

However, TMC leader Saugata Roy reacted to Baghel’s comments and said: “Bhagel is not that important. Who can comment on Mamata? We are trying to reach out to other states, people are coming and joining, we are not into poaching.”

Meanwhile, Kishor’s closeness to the TMC has been increasing. Even before the Bhabanipur election, he visited a temple with Banerjee, and big Trinamool leaders, including Abhishek Banerjee, have been targeting the Congress.

Also, Kishor’s team is playing a vital role in Goa and Tripura for the TMC, which is now attempting to expand its base beyond West Bengal. For the last three days, TMC’s UP Twitter handle has been talking about the Lakhimpur Kheri incident. Apart from hitting out at the BJP, the Twitter account is also targeting Congress, saying TMC was the first party to reach the site of disturbance.

Kishor’s criticism of Congress may be directly proportional to TMC doing the same. How it will pan out in political rewards remains to be seen, but one thing is assured – Kishor’s relations with the Congress is currently in ‘cold storage’.

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