'BJP's working better than ours': Pratibha Singh on ‘difficult’ road for Himachal Pradesh Congress in Lok Sabha poll

Pratibha Singh says she has conveyed her message to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and asked him to strengthen the organisation

The strength of the House in Himachal has come down from 68 to 62.

ANI

Shimla, March 1

Amid the political uncertainty in Himachal Pradesh, state Congress chief Pratibha Singh on Friday asserted that the BJP’s work is better than that of the grand old party.

"A lot of things remain to be done in the Congress. As an MP, I visit my constituency and try to interact with the people and address their problems. It is true that the BJP's working is better than ours," she said.

Pratibha said she had conveyed her message to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and asked him to strengthen the organisation.

"From day 1, I had been telling the CM that we would be able to face the upcoming election only if he strengthens the organisation. This is a very tough situation for us. We can see a lot of difficulties on the ground - as per the directions of PM Modi, the BJP is going to do a lot of things," she added.

The Himachal Pradesh Congress chief said: "We are on a weak footing there. I urged him again and again that we needed to strengthen the party...I can say it is a difficult time. Still, we have to contest the election and win."

Earlier on Thursday, Pratibha and son Vikramaditya Singh continued to exert pressure on CM Sukhu, saying they had highlighted issues they thought "were not correct".

Pratibha appeared to back the six rebel MLAs who had cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha election, saying it was natural for MLAs to be upset.

"Definitely, why not? When it has been more than a year and you take no cognisance or listen to them, it is natural for them to be upset. Had you sat them down, talked to them and found out a solution, this situation would not have occurred," Pratibha said, answering a query.

With the six rebel MLAs disqualified, the strength of the House has come down from 68 to 62, and the halfway mark is now 32.

With the loss of six MLAs, the Congress now has 34 MLAs and the BJP, with independents, has 28. The fortunes of the Congress will now rest on its ability to keep the rest of its flock together.