Congress feels the heat as RJD warms up to BSP, SP

NEW DELHI: Two days after being left out of the Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress found itself facing fresh embarrassment today on account of Rashtriya Janata Dal’s public endorsement of the Mayawati-Akhilesh Yadav pact minus the Congress.

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 14

Two days after being left out of the Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress found itself facing fresh embarrassment today on account of Rashtriya Janata Dal’s public endorsement of the Mayawati-Akhilesh Yadav pact minus the Congress.

As RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav warmed up to BSP chief Mayawati and SP president Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow, the Congress felt the heat in the capital with party insiders acknowledging that the coalition setback in UP could have far reaching consequences for Rahul Gandhi’s plans of a national level anti-BJP coalition by way of state-level understandings.

“After what happened in UP, nothing can be ruled out. It’s the time to wait and watch,” said a senior Congress leader, not ruling out changing political equations across states for the General Election.

The Congress has reacted warily to the remarks of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad’s son Tejashwi, who said in Lucknow today that the BSP and the SP were enough to defeat the BJP in Uttar Pradesh. The remarks literally implied irrelevance of Congress.

Senior Congress leader and former Lok Sabha MP from UP’s Kushinagar RPN Singh today accused the BSP and the SP of toeing the BJP’s line in UP. “In UP, no one can defeat the BJP without the Congress. The BSP and the SP’s decision is the decision the BJP was hoping for originally. The BJP wanted secular parties to contest separately. The BJP wanted to disturb Opposition unity. The Congress, on the other hand, has been working to bring everyone together to take on the BJP. Rahul Gandhi is attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi on corruption, but no one else is doing that. Why?” asked Singh, a former MoS Home.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi recently said the BSP and the SP didn’t even speak to the Congress before taking the call on UP alliance. Privately, some Congress functionaries admitted today that the party would have to bat on the front-foot going forward lest UP setback is replicated in Bihar or Jharkhand.

“UP setback can have consequences and we have to watch out for that,” a Congress source said, exuding confidence that the Congress was prepared for LS polls in every state. Even in Karnataka, the JD-S today warned the Congress against treating it as a “third grade citizen” in seat-sharing talks for the General Election.

Though the Congress believes the JD-S will eventually come around, it realises the impact of public threats in politics. “Eventually in Karnataka, everything will work out well between the Congress and the JD-S, who are the ruling allies,” Congress spokesman Pawan Khera said.