Harish Rawat takes responsibility for Uttarakhand polls, calls Punjab result 'surprising'

After two body blows in the form of Congress' defeat in Uttarakhand assembly election 2022 as well as his personal loss in the Lalkuwa assembly constituency, former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat on Thursday opened up to the media regarding the electoral outcome, his take on it, and future plans.

Hyderabad:After two body blows in the form of Congress' defeat in Uttarakhand assembly election 2022 as well as his personal loss in the Lalkuwa assembly constituency, former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat on Thursday opened up to the media regarding the electoral outcome, his take on it, and future plans.

Rawat congratulated Congress leaders and workers for their efforts, adding that he would like to take all responsibility for the loss.

"As the head of the campaign committee, I take full responsibility for the loss. Somewhere along the line, there was some fault in our campaign strategy, for which we paid the price", he said.

Being asked whether he could perform better if he had put in place someone else in Lalkuwa rather than himself, Rawat refused to comment, saying the mandate was clear and he had been unable to gain the trust of people.

Speaking about Congress' crushing defeat in Punjab, however, the ex-CM said the result was quite 'surprising'. "Unemployment is at its peak. During the COVID crisis, people were left to die. The price of commodities keeps on increasing. No hope is in sight. The slogans of 'BJP zindabad' despite all this is not something I am able to understand", he said.

Speaking about his political future, Rawat stated he hoped to go back to the grassroots level.

"If Congress permits me, I would like to renew my life as a booth committee overseer, as I've spent considerable time at the top level", the ex-CM noted.