'Grand Alliance' in UP: SP, Cong differ over RLD's inclusion

Formation of a 'grand alliance' in Uttar Pradesh was a matter of dispute today between prospective allies Samajwadi Party and Congress, with the two airing divergent views on inclusion of Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).
Samajwadi Party, which announced its decision to contest from over 300 of the 403 Assembly seats, ruled out any alliance with RLD, saying it would have a tie-up with Congress only.
"We will forge an alliance only with the Congress. We will not ally with the RLD. No talks are going on with them (RLD). We will contest from over 300 seats (out of 403) and the Congress will be there for the rest of them," SP national vice president Kironmoy Nanda told PTI.

The decisions regarding the alliance and seats were taken at a marathon six-hour meeting held by Chief Minister and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav with senior party leaders.
Sources said the RLD wanted more seats than what the SP was ready to part with.
"We wanted the seats of our choice but there was no agreement on it," RLD spokesman Anil Dubey said, declining to elaborate.

Congress reportedly offered some 20 seats to RLD chief Ajit Singh's son Jayant Choudhary, who is in touch with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.
According to insiders, Ajit Singh has said he will not accept less than 30 seats and was now contemplating going solo.

"If the Congress wants to work out a deal with the RLD from its share (of seats), that is up to them," Nanda said.
Hours later, Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told reporters in Delhi that, "Contours of the alliance are being worked out. So...It is premature for me to say something on the issue till things are finalised."
Surjewala said this when asked whether the RLD has been kept out of the tie-up.
In the 2012 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, the RLD had won only nine seats. Two years later, in the Lok Sabha election, large swaths of Jats, who account for 17 per cent of western UP's voters, spurned the party for the BJP.

The Jats are, however, upset as the BJP has not included them in caste-based groups entitled to government jobs and admission in educational institutions.
Nanda said the details of the seats would be announced by SP national president Akhilesh Yadav.
"After the alliance with the Congress, we will get an absolute majority in the state and Akhilesh will become chief minister again," he asserted, adding that the SP will release its poll manifesto soon.