Cong softens stand on AAP

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 15

As the central leadership of the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have kept the pot boiling over the formation of a national pre-poll alliance, the state Congress leadership seems to have softened its stand on the issue.

Though the Punjab Congress was not in favour of an alliance with AAP, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has already stated that the final decision rests with the high command, depending on the national perspective and electoral compulsions.

The state party leadership strongly feels that this time, it is advantage Congress as AAP, the principal Opposition party in the state Assembly, is a divided house.

Talking in context of a recent meeting hosted by NCP president Sharad Pawar that saw Congress president Rahul Gandhi and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal coming together for the first time, a senior Congress leader said that the proposed alliance in Punjab cannot be seen in isolation. “If leaving a seat for AAP in Punjab can improve the overall tally of the Congress and help it throw the BJP out of power, there is no reason to reject the alliance,” said the leader.

The state unit can be asked to finalise the seat it wants to leave for AAP, be it Bathinda, Sangrur, Faridkot, Fatehgarh Sahib and Anandpur Sahib.

“In case of a national alliance in which the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) becomes a partner, the Congress will have to leave a seat for the BSP also,” said a senior party leader.

The Aam Aadmi Party has already announced candidates for five seats — Sangrur, Faridkot, Anandpur Sahib, Hoshiarpur and Amritsar. In case of an alliance, the party is expected to ask for at least three seats.

The Bathinda and Anandpur Sahib seats are represented by Akali MPs Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra, respectively. Sangrur, Faridkot and Fatehgarh Sahib seats are represented by AAP MPs Bhagwant Mann, Harinder Singh Khalsa and Prof Sadhu Singh, respectively.