News Politics National Congress was out-funded in this election: Jairam Ramesh

Congress was out-funded in this election: Jairam Ramesh

New Delhi: Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh Tuesday said his Congress party has been "out-funded" as far as this election was concerned, but maintained that the exit polls which predict a BJP clean sweep would


Ramesh said that Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi couldn't be blamed if the party fails to return to power. "Rahul was an indefatigable campaigner. He was there in every nook and corner. He brought spirit to our campaign."

"Our (Congress) campaign was party-centric and not person-centric," he added.

On whether the Congress would have got better results had Gandhi's sister Priyanka Gandhi been more active, Ramesh said: "Priyanka Gandhi had a backroom role and a public role in only Amethi and Rae Bareli (the constituencies from where Rahul Gandhi and his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi were contesting).

"But her back office role was much more substantive. She was a sounding board and she had some ideas."

Even as he listed the achievements of his ministry, Ramesh said he didn't think that flagship schemes like Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act would be scrapped if the BJP comes to power.