New Delhi: Expressing happiness over the Assembly election results for five states, Congress on Friday chose the occasion to taunt BJP and Left parties asking them to learn the "right lessons" and stop attempts to destabilize the UPA government.
"In this election more than 828 assembly seats went to polls. A national party (BJP), which claims to form government there...could not win seats even in double digit. The other party (CPI-M), which aided, abetted and supported BJP inside and outside Parliament also could do no better," senior party leader Pranab Mukherjee said adding it was reduced to double digit figure in West Bengal.
Noting that the verdict of these elections was for both "stability and change", Mukherjee said there were certain political parties, which wanted to destabilise the UPA government and they could not reconcile to the fact that after their efforts to destabilise the government in 2008, people gave increased mandate to the UPA bringing it back to power.
"For last one year, efforts were made to destabilise not only the government but through it destabilise the system and bring in instability.... I hope political parties would draw right lessons from the results and behave. In Parliamentary democracy election comes after every five years. Responsible parties are expected to wait for that period," he said.
Mukherjee said if any party, after its defeat in general elections, tries to destabilise the government, it destabilises the system in that process and brings instability as was witnessed from 1996 to 2004.
He recalled that during the NDA rule, when Congress was in the Opposition, it did not bring any no-confidence motion.
"Therefore opposition parties should wait for three years till election comes. In the process to fulfill their individual ambitions, they should not do anything that brings instability and that is the lesson from this verdict," Mukherjee said.
The Finance Minister, who is the tallest party leader from West Bengal, admitted that the results of this assembly election giving a sweeping victory to Congress-Trinamool Congress alliance is "mandate for Mamata Banerjee".
"People of Bengal have given verdict clearly in favour of Mamata Banerjee. They have voted for her. It is mandate for Mamata," Mukherjee said.
To a question on whether Congress would take any lesson from Banerjee's victory in West Bengal as his party could not dislodge the CPI-M for decades, Mukherjee replied in the affirmative.
"Of course. From every effort, we have to draw a lesson. We did make attempts but we could not do it," he said, adding that Congress also contributed to the victory of the alliance this time, where its eight per cent votes in more than 200 constituencies it did not contest, helped Trianmool Congress win many seats.
He said the transfer of votes of one alliance partner to the other was very smooth in West Bengal.
At the same time, Mukherjee dismissed contentions that the results have rendered the Left irrelevant in politics.
"I do not consider any political party becomes irrelevant after losing one election. In that case BJP would have become irrelevant after it had got two seats in 1984. After five years, it got 89 seats and after that it got 118. Defeat and success in Parliamentary politics are part of life," he said.
Asked about results in Tamil Nadu, where the party's alliance with DMK was trounced by AIADMK, Mukherjee described it as a "vote of change" which "we accept with humility."
He added that wherever the party has not fared well, "We will try to correct our mistake and become worthy of their trust in future."
To a question whether DMK was now a liability of Congress, Mukherjee said the alliance partners are not liabilities for Congress but friends and assets. He said DMK is a coalition partner of UPA government at the Centre since 2009 and continues to remain so.
Asked whether the 2G scam had any impact on the election results, he agreed corruption as an issue might have had it’s impact on the minds of people.
He, at the same time, said that when national parties participate in elections, they fight on broad national policies.
To a question on whether the defeat in Tamil Nadu will set a chain of corrective actions in the party, Mukherjee said the party does not wait for elections to carry out course corrections.
He admitted that the party expected more number of seats from Kerala, a view which was also shared by AICC general secretary in-charge for the state Madhusudan Mistry, who said he was expecting 80 to 85 seats for the Congress-led front there.
On Assam results, he said the party has got not only renewed but also increased mandate, which he described as a verdict for stability, development and also for the efforts taken for the reconciliation and bringing the misguided youths of the state into national mainstream.
Mukherjee downplayed the loss of two assembly seats to Congress in Karnataka by-elections saying these elections are not fought on broad national issues.
"Surely, we will have to examine and draw corrective lessons," he said.
Mukherjee also congratulated the Election Commission for holding "magnificent" elections.
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