The Congress in Uttar Pradesh has no plans of striking up an alliance with either the Samajwadi Party or the Rashtriya Lok Dal for the next assembly elections in the state, despite the recent show of bonhomie. “We are absolutely clear that we are going to contest the next assembly elections on our own and there should be no
confusion about this. Any alliance with other like-minded parties will take place, if needed, only in the post poll scenario,” asserted a senior AICC leader.
Talking to this correspondent on phone, the leader who did not wish to be named, said, “Mr Rahul Gandhi is determined that the party should go it alone and the entire state leadership agrees with him. We have had enough of alliances and we are now trying to stand on our own feet. In fact, very soon, the Congress will start the process of short listing candidates for the next assembly elections.”
Speculations about a possible Congress alliance with the Samajwadi Party and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) had begun after the two parties paved the way for the Congress to get its candidates elected unopposed to the Vidhan Parishad and the Rajya Sabha, despite falling short of the numbers. Both the parties did not field their candidates, making it a smooth ride for the Congress. “Our relationship with the Samajwadi Party remains cordial because they are supporting the UPA government. Beyond this, there has been no talk of any further development in the relationship,” the Congress leader said.
Samajwadi sources also admitted that chances of any pre-poll alliance with the Congress were “slim”.
“We are the main Opposition party in UP with a definite presence in every Assembly segment. We cannot afford to go without contesting a chunk of seats in the next elections. In fact, we are looking towards a majority for ourselves and so there is no question of any deal with the Congress,” said a SP leader.
The RLD, according to sources, could be heading for a merger with the Congress in the coming months. The party leadership has realised that despite having five MPs in the Lok Sabha and 10 MLAs in the UP Assembly, the party is on the road to nowhere and remains politically irrelevant in the present scenario.