Assembly poll results: Congress needs self-introspection, says MP Benny Behanan as party trailing in all five states

Reacting to the State Assembly election result trends in five states, Congress Lok Sabha MP Benny Behanan said that the party needs self-introspection, adding that it should learn from the reasons for the party's 'failure' in this election and embody that lesson.

"Congress needs self-introspection. The Congress must now learn from the reasons for the failure of this election and embody that lesson. The unification of anti-BJP votes in all states is yet to take place in Indian politics. It must have a common platform. It should be led by Congress. The Congress should also be able to provide such leadership," said Behnan.

He further warned that if the party does not prepare itself to act on reality, then it wil continue to face more challenges in the future.

"If Congress is not prepared to act on that reality, it will face more challenges. While taking on the political responsibility of uniting the opposition, Congress must also play a leading role in uniting all within the organization. I'm not ready for an accusation right now. Congress should learn about this," said the Congress leader.

"This is not just a general election defeat. Congress had hoped for a slightly better result in these states. I will not criticize any leader. It is time for Congress to take up the political mission of uniting the secular forces against communalism and prepare for a strong struggle by uniting the entire people organizationally," Behanan added.

Votes are being counted in five states - Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur - where assembly elections recently concluded.

Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is poised to return to power with a comfortable majority for an unprecedented second term in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is on course to a historic victory in Punjab, according to election results and trends on Thursday.

In the other two states of Manipur and Goa, which also went to polls in February-March, the BJP has emerged as the single largest party and is on course to form the government.

The election results came as another jolt to Congress which could not retain Punjab or come to power in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur where it was the main rival of the BJP. The poll results were also a shocker for Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh and Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab.

( With inputs from ANI )