BSP may come on board for 2019 Lok Sabha election: Rahul

Congress President Rahul Gandhi Friday said BSP chief Mayawati's decision not to have an alliance with his party in Madhya Pradesh will not impact its poll prospects in the state even as he suggested that the BSP may come on board for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati announced early this week that her party would not forge an alliance with the Congress "at any cost" for the upcoming assembly polls in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, dealing a blow to the opposition's efforts to stitch a united front against the ruling BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

"The alliance in the state and the alliance in the centre are different and I think Mayawatiji has sort of indicated that...I don't see the BSP alliance impacting us much in Madhya Pradesh. It would have been a good thing to have them, but I think we will win the election in Madhya Pradesh, in Chhattisgarh. I think, in the national election, the parties will come together, particularly in Uttar Pradesh," he said at the HT Leadership Summit.

Asked if he does not rule out having an alliance with BSP in Lok Sabha polls, he said, "That is an indication we have."
Probed further about the possibility of him becoming prime minister, Gandhi said, "If they (allies) want me, sure...I will."
Gandhi said after his criticism by BJP/RSS, he has developed a thick skin and is not disturbed by it. "My response is to listen."