After the Congress party won the Assembly elections in three Hindi-speaking heartland states of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, not only has its position in the state of Maharashtra been strengthened, its scope to bargain with alliance partners like the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and other smaller parties has also been increased.
NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said that they have made demands for equal number of seats for 2019 Lok Sabha polls and for the state Assembly elections too. "We are holding meetings with the Congress party over equal representation. We have almost agreed upon 40 seats, decision on the remaining eight seats will be taken amicably. We are confident of getting our due right. Besides, swapping may happen for a couple of seats depending on the current strength of the respective parties. The chance of winning is a major criterion while swapping seats," Malik added.
However, Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said that nothing has been fixed yet. "Primary talks with our allies are on. The NCP may have demanded more seats but we have not agreed to that yet. Why should we concede to their demands? The decision will be taken at the higher level," Sawant said.
Sources in Congress said that the victory of the the Congress Party in these three northern states has put them in better position. "We as a party are no more ebbing. In fact we are rekindling and our vote banks of Dalit, tribal, farmers, labour and minority are coming back to Congress. So we have better chances to win more seats now. Therefore, there is no questions of giving away our own seats to smaller parties. On the other hand, we are ready to accommodate them but not our own cost," said senior Congress leaders requested anonymity.
He also said that this same formula will be applied in other states as well where they are fighting the elections with regional parties. "After the three states victory, Bhahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati and Samajwadi party president Akhilesh Yadav realised the importance of our party so wittingly extended their support to form the government in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. This victory is big boost to our cadre and it has also helped to consolidated our position as a strong opposition party. And we will sure to play the major role in 2019 elections, " Congress party leader added requested anonymity.
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