PPA chairman rules out any pre-poll alliance

Peoples' Party of Arunachal (PPA) chairman Kamen Ringu Friday said the party will fight the state Assembly and Lok Sabha elections alone and dismissed claims made by Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee president Takam Sanjoy of forging a pre-poll alliance with the PPA.

Ringu said the PPA president Kahfa Bengia and secretary general Kaling Jerang had casual discussions with the Congress which was not "endorsed" by the party.

"We have temporarily suspended them for hobnobbing with the Congress on seat sharing without the knowledge of the partys executive body. We will not forge any alliance with any national political parties but will contest the polls alone keeping our regional ideology intact," Ringu said.

Election to the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh Assembly and the two Lok Sabha seats in the state will be held on April 11.

He told reporters here that "the PPA with regional identity will go alone to contest in all the 60 Assembly and two Lok Sabha seats in the state and will soon announce the list of candidates."