Congress starts exercise to 'fight elections alone' in UP

With Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on the verge of forming an alliance to contest the upcoming general elections, the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh has started an exercise to fight elections alone in the state, sources said on Saturday.

The Congress alliance committee, along with the party leaders in Uttar Pradesh including Raj Babbar, P. L. Punia, Pramod Tiwari and General Secretary in-charge Ghulam Nabi Azad, started this exercise in the state, sources claimed.

On Friday, the committee finalised eight districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, and will finalise district of the western region of the state, sources added.

"A formal announcement on fighting the elections alone will be taken after the Congress president (Rahul Gandhi) will return from Dubai," the source stated.

Uttar Pradesh Congress President Raj Babbar and other senior leaders are likely to go to Lucknow tomorrow. The party is expected to hold 11 meetings in total in various districts of the state.

Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) are expected to formally announce on Saturday their coalition for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, but ambiguity persists on whether the Congress would be made part of a 'grand alliance'.

Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of 80 Lok Sabha seats out the 543 and plays a crucial role in government formation in the Centre.