After SP-BSP alliance, Congress says will contest all 80 LS seats in UP

Left out of the SP-BSP pre-poll tie-up in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday announced it would go it alone on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming general election.

After a brainstorming session with senior party leaders, Congress general secretary in-charge of UP Ghulam Nabi Azad, however, said his party would accommodate any secular force capable of taking on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the Lok Sabha election.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed the recently forged alliance between the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party will have no impact on the state's politics and the BJP will "effectively wipe them off".

Speaking at a programme here, Adityanath said the SP-BSP alliance denoted "casteist mentality" and "anarchic elements".

"The alliance means giving power to people who are corrupt, anarchic elements and have casteist mentality. This alliance will have no impact on the politics of the state.

"It is good that both these parties have come together. It will help us effectively wipe them off," he asserted.

The priest-turned-politician also went on to say, "Why are SP and BSP different parties? They should be merged".

Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, an ally of the ruling BJP, appeared to differ with Adityanath's assessment. It said the SP-BSP alliance will put up a strong fight in Lok Sabha elections.

"The country is witnessing an era of coalition, and no party has the courage to go to the polls alone. The SP-BSP alliance is a strong alliance and it will put up a strong contest in the elections," UP Cabinet minister and SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar told reporters Saturday.

Replying to another query on whether his party will go with the SP-BSP alliance, Rajbhar said there was "no truth" in such rumours.

Taking a jibe at BJP, he said, "The BJP feels there is a saffron wave across the state. The BJP is having the galatfahmi (wrong perception) that more than 60 per cent of people are supporting it."
In another development, Shivpal Yadav, chief of Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) told reporters here, "When Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) had forged an alliance (with BSP), there was no fear of CBI. Today there is a fear of CBI, and it is because of CBI that the alliance is taking place. This alliance will not prove to be successful."
Speaking to reporters here, Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in UP and defeat BJP."
Asked whether the Congress will forge a coalition with any other party, Azad said, "If any party is willing to accompany the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will definitely be accommodated."
On his party being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, he said, "We wanted that the Congress should have been a part of the Grand Alliance (against the BJP) in UP. But if someone does not want to walk along, nothing can be done."
To another question on the SP-BSP tie-up, Azad said, "Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the party would have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contesting on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will hold at least 13 rallies in UP."
"I have seen that our votes get transferred to the Congress, but not vice-versa. We do not gain from an alliance with the Congress, whereas the vote transfer is perfect in an SP-BSP tie-up."
Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, "Modi is not concerned about the country, he is bothered about his own chair. One of the biggest scams has taken place during the tenure of this government. The government has not gone for a probe. Not going for a probe does not mean that the scam has not been committed."