Dikshit downplays party's poor showing in civic elections

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As Congress received a drubbing in the Delhi municipal polls, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Wednesday sought to downplay the party's poor showing saying it was civic elections and could not be compared with anything else.

In her first comments after the party lost to BJP in all the three Corporations in Delhi, Dikshit said, "This was not my election. It was the MCD elections.

"When our (Assembly) elections come, we will see. If there were some shortcomings, we will rectify it. We have improved our tally. Corrective steps will be taken," she told reporters here.

Her remarks were in contrast to East Delhi MP and her son Sandeep Dikshit who attributed the defeat to an anti-Congress mood generated by scams like 2G and price rise and a disconnect between people and the government.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said there are winners and losers in every election and one has to accept it with good grace.

"These are local elections, local issues, people who work for the people. These are the qualities that count. In every election, there are winners and losers and one has to accept it with good grace," he said.

The BJP victory was a rude shock to Dikshit who has been ruling the capital for the last nearly 14 years uninterruptedly and trifurcated the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in a bid to weaken the saffron party's hold.

She had overcome the resistance of a number of senior party leaders who had warned that splitting the 53 year-old body ahead of the polls will cost the party dearly.

Dikshit, who had addressed series of rallies across the city and campaigned hard for the polls, had ruled out price rise highlighted by BJP as an issue but it now appears that the Chief Minister's assessment was not entirely correct.