Prashant Kishor asked to join Congress, poll strategist presents 2024 revival plan: Reports

Prashant Kishor's latest meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and top leaders Rahul Gandhi and KC Venugopal has triggered fresh speculations of his joining in the oldest party, which has been routed in the last round of assembly elections in the country, media reports said.

NDTV quoting sources said Kishor has shown interest in joining the party and "given a detailed presentation of the party's weaknesses and what needs to be done for improvement."

News channels reported that he told the Congress to concentrate on 370 to 400 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

According to News18, Kishor suggested strategic alliances where the Congress is weak for 2024.

Kishor met the Congress top brass to draw a blueprint for the next General Elections scheduled to be held in 2024, the channel reported.

Kishor, who had worked with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2014, helped West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the 2021 assembly elections regain her lost grounds  and trounce the BJP after the 2019 general election results gave the saffron party a foothold in the eastern state.

Kishor had earlier held several rounds of talks with the Congress top brass as the political strategist is keen to rejoin politics.

In an interview, Kishor had claimed the grand old party was unable to trust him and his plans to revive the outfit.

In the recent state elections, the Congress has suffered the most losing its bastion Punjab to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) besides performing poorly in Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand.

Kishor's meeting is also crucial as the assembly elections in Modi's Gujarat, where the AAP is actively campaigning, is due to be held later this year.

The AAP after its Punjab triumph is remotely seen as an alternative to the grand old party to challenge the saffron camp nationally.