Assembly elections: Congress keeps doors open for pre-poll alliance in UP

Leaders took part in executive committee meeting and condemned demonetisation

Congress appears to have kept its doors open for a pre-poll alliance in Uttar Pradesh, given the inclination of SP's "newly elected president" Akhilesh Yadav for such a tie-up to garner over 300 Assembly seats.

"As of now, we are working on the recommendations of the screening committee for all the 403 seats in the state ... what can happen in future will be known only later ... But there is a lot of pressure on secular parties (for an alliance)," AICC General Secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad told newspersons on the sidelines of the party's executive committee meeting here.

"The 36-member Central Election Committee will meet here from tomorrow for three days in which names of the candidates will be finalised," he said.

The Congress leader, however, did not openly advocate alliance with any party for the coming polls.

Talks of a possible alliance with Congress had hit the roadblock with SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav ruling out tie up with any party and favouring only merger of parties with SP.

Leaders including UPCC president Raj Babbar, chief ministerial candidate Sheila Dikshit among others took part in the executive committee meeting which condemned demonetisation and attacked the central government for imposing hardships on the common people.