NEW DELHI, 17 May 2007 — Following the Congress party’s rout in the Uttar Pradesh (UP) polls, top party leaders have started finding reasons for the dismal show.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi has attributed the party’s disappointing performance to its organizational failure. “We mounted a spirited campaign throughout during which we witnessed a great deal of goodwill and support. But organizationally, we were not able to transform that goodwill into votes,” Sonia said yesterday while addressing a Congress parliamentary party meeting, attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other party legislators.

Speaking for the first time on UP polls, she said that though communal forces had been dealt a severe blow, “Our performance was very disappointing.”

Referring to assembly polls due in Gujarat and Goa, Sonia said: “We now face a stupendous challenge, a challenge that we accept and that we will meet with hard work and determination.” Regarding Gujarat, she observed that in a bid to retain power, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would “undoubtedly raise communal tensions and passions.” Observing that Congress performed well in Gujarat in 2004 Lok Sabha polls, she said: “This gives us both hope and confidence that the people of the state which gave birth to the Father of the Nation will vote for strengthening Gujarat’s traditions of secularism and social harmony.”

In Goa too, Sonia pointed out that Congress would be confronting BJP whose “single-point program will lead to communal polarization.”

Lashing out at BJP for its attacks and atrocities on religious minorities in BJP-ruled states, Sonia said that though Congress has exposed communal designs of BJP, “I do feel that the central government should take serious note of these dangerous trends.”

On fake encounters, she said the manner in which Gujarat police were allowed to kill innocent people on the pretext of fighting terrorism was shocking. “This also reflects the blatantly partisan attitude of the state government where an issue of human rights has been given a communal color,” Sonia pointed out.

Citing incidents of cash-for-query scam and human trafficking cases, in which legislators are involved, Sonia said: “Unless we take new and bold measures to restore the public image and credibility of our elected representatives, we will be placing our democratic institutions in jeopardy.”

Taking stock of party’s performance in UP, Rahul Gandhi told reporters after the meeting: “Basically what happened is that we don’t have an organization there and we have to build that. It is a process that we are going to work at. As far as we are concerned our fight carries on and we are going to bring Congress back in Uttar Pradesh,” he said. On Mayawati’s amazing performance, Rahul said: “I congratulate Mayawati.”