Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday in a veiled attack on the BJP said the Lok Sabha polls mandate was rejection of the politics of “divisiveness, hate and polarisation”.

Kharge, who has been accusing the BJP of doing divisive politics, INDIA bloc must continue to raise the issues concerning the public.

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In his opening remarks in the extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, the Congress president, “The CWC congratulates leaders and crores of workers their determination, will power and resolve. People have spoken against the dictatorial and anti-democratic ways of the ruling party. It is a decisive rejection of the politics of the last 10 years. Its rejection of the politics of divisiveness, hate and polarisation.”

Referring to the party’s poor performance in several states, he said, “While we celebrate the revival, we should pause a little as in some states we have not performed to our abilities and expectations. Further, we could not repeat our performance in states where we had previously done well in Assembly elections and formed the government.”

Informing that the party will soon hold separate discussions in this regard, he said, “We have to take urgent remedial measures. These are states which have traditionally favoured Congress, where we have opportunities which we have to harness not for our own advantage but for the benefit of our people.”

On the INDIA bloc, Kharge said, “I will be failing in my duty if I don’t acknowledge the INDIA bloc partners, in which each party played its designated role in different states, each party contributed to the other. Our determination is that the INDIA group must continue. We must function cohesively and collectively both in parliament and outside.”

“The issues that we raised in the election campaign are issues that are bothering the people of India. We have to continue to raise them both in parliament and outside. We must be disciplined, and must be united. The people have reposed their faith back in us in substantial measures and we must build on it. We accept this verdict with genuine humility,” he said.

Later, the CWC passed a resolution congratulating “the people of the country for voting so powerfully to preserve democracy, protect the Constitution and enhance social and economic justice.”

“They (people) have decisively rejected both the substance and style of governance over the past decade. The verdict of the people is not just a political loss but a personal and moral defeat for the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) who sought the mandate in his name and ran a campaign anchored in lies, hate, prejudice, divisiveness and extreme bigotry. The verdict of the people is clearly against the undermining of democracy and democratic institutions that has taken place since 2014,” the resolution read.

It further said, “We have recovered and revived no doubt but we still have a long way to go to occupy the pre-eminent position the party once held in the nation’s political life. The people of India have spoken–the Congress has been given another chance. It is now up to us to build on it. We must and we will.”

“The Congress will continue to be steadfast in its commitment to social and economic justice and safeguarding the Constitution and its principles, values and provisions,” it added.