Congress must support other opposition parties: NCP

In order to give a tough fight to the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress must support other opposition parties, particularly the AAP in Delhi and the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh, NCP leader D.P Tripathi said on Thursday.

Addressing a press conference here, the Nationalist Congress Party General Secretary also said that the Congress-NCP alliance had been finalized in Maharashtra with negotiations for one or two seats still underway.

"The doors are still open for the Congress to forge an alliance with (Delhi Chief Minister) Arvind Kejriwal. We support Kejriwal's move. We appeal to Congress to enter into an agreement with the AAP. Seats can be shared in accordance with their hold," he said.

"The SP-BSP alliance is a key part of the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance). The Congress must support it to make it more successful."

Tripathi maintained that the NCP will contest from Bihar's Katihar seat, which is represented by Tariq Anwar who defected to the Congress last year.

"It is not a personal fiefdom of Tariq Anwar. We will fight from Katihar. It is our seat. We have spoken to both Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)," he said.

Tripathi said the opposition parties had pressured NCP leader Sharad Pawar to contest the election since they want a "seasoned politician" in the Lok Sabha.

"It is possible he may contest from Madha," he said.

He said the issue of who will be the Prime Minister from Mahagathbandhan will be discussed after the polls get over.

He said the opposition parties were busy drafting a Common Minimum Programme (CMP) and they will meet as soon as the election dates are announced.

--IANS

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