New Delhi: The Congress managers are in the midst of tough negotiations with allies SP, TMC and AAP to conclude a set-sharing pact of the INDIA alliance soon.
Former party chief Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra will have a break from Feb 26 to March 1 during which he will attend some crucial strategy meetings in Delhi. According to party insiders, seat-sharing negotiations with the SP in Uttar Pradesh are in an advanced stage and would be concluded soon after discussing a few seats like Moradabad, Bijnor and Badaun.
While SP has fielded party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav from Badaun the Congress plans to nominate former MP Saleem Sherwani, who resigned from the SP a few days back. Similarly, the Congress is also asking for Moradabad and Bijnor seats in western UP while the SP has some reservations over the proposal. The negotiations with AAP involve seat-sharing in Delhi, Haryana, Assam, Gujarat and Goa.
According to Congress insiders, the high command is unhappy over the way AAP has declared candidates on two seats in Gujarat and three seats in Assam unilaterally. The grand old party was also miffed over AAP offering only one seat in Delhi through a public announcement.
“I hope they behave like a mature party. Alliance talks should not be held in public,” AICC general secretary in charge of Delhi Dipak Babaria told this channel. The grand old party is demanding three seats in Delhi in exchange of one seat each in Haryana, Goa, Assam and Gujarat for AAP, said party insiders.
“The AAP does not have a major presence in Assam. They had won a few seats in Guwahati local body polls in 2022. We are preparing to win maximum seats in the state,” AICC general secretary in charge of Assam Jitendra Singh told ETV Bharat.
Singh recently reviewed preparations for the Lok Sabha polls and the names of some candidates along with state unit chief Bhupen Borah and other senior leaders. The Congress managers are in no mood to give a seat to TMC in Assam but are still hopeful of an agreement with Mamata Banerjee’s party in West Bengal.
Recently, Banerjee declared her party will contest all the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal after the Congress rejected her offer of two seats. Since then, there has been speculation that the grand old party would tie-up with the Left parties, leaving the TMC out.
“There is hope for the alliance in West Bengal. Talks are still on with Mamata Banerjee and she is still a part of the INDIA alliance. The main alliance has to be between Congress and TMC. Both parties can get the advantage of cross transfer of votes,” AICC general secretary in charge of West Bengal Ghulam Ahmed Mir told this channel.
According to party insiders, the Congress managers think the party should get 7-8 seats in Bengal. Similarly, alliance talks are in an advanced stage in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu and need to be finalized soon, said party insiders. “There always last-minute hassles in seat-sharing. All the parties try to get a good deal even though there is a broad agreement on fighting the polls together,” a senior AICC functionary said.
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