A day after the CWC decided against a national alliance between UPA constituents, two key allies, the RJD and the LJP, urged the party to reconsider the decision.
A day after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) decided against a national alliance between UPA constituents, two key allies, the RJD and the LJP, urged the party to reconsider the decision.
“We should fight together, we must sit and sort out the issue of seats, the idea should be to help each other win,” said RJD chief Lalu Prasad. His views were also echoed by the LJP. “If we have a national level alliance the UPA will emerge stronger,” said Mohd Khaliq, national general secretary of the party.
The RJD and the LJP are allies of the Congress in Bihar but want to contest some seats outside the state also. “We want a few seats, its up to the Congress to decide,” said Lalu. The LJP, meanwhile, said that while it was committed to helping the UPA, since there was no alliance at the national level, it would put up some candidates in MP and Rajasthan and contest the Chandni Chowk seat in Delhi.
Even the NCP said it wants to contest 15 additional seats outside Maharashtra. The issue would be taken up once party chief Sharad Pawar and civil aviation minister Praful Patel return from abroad.
Lalu met UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Friday to convene a meeting of the allies to sort out the seat-sharing arrangement. “This is an era of coalitions and is likely to continue for sometime,” said Lalu.
Both the RJD and the LJP continue to swear by the UPA. Lalu said that though the constituents would contest on their own manifesto, when it came to government formation they would work out a common minimum programme. “UPA is not a political party but a combination of secular parties, it continues to exist politically,” he said.
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