The Congress could really do with a vacation in the hills amidst Shimla’s bracing winter chill. It is one place where they can be certain that they did actually win. Perhaps like the erstwhile British rulers of India, they can see themselves chugging up the picturesque route in the lovely little toy train to contemplate victory and defeat, and the meaning of life. In a collective gathering of the Congress leadership, some would perhaps argue that the fact that Narendra Modi could not really increase his tally in Gujarat was actually an achievement. Others may reflect on the importance of strong state leaders such as old warhorse Virbhadra Singh, who certainly had a role in scripting the party’s return to power in Himachal Pradesh.