Regional parties abusing Cong shouldn't expect us to support them for Third Front: Salman Khurshid

Some regional parties are more keen to fight the Congress, rather than the BJP, says senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid, stressing they can't keep "abusing" the grand old party and expect its support after the election results.

Without naming any party, Khurshid said regional parties should move away from "transactional politics" towards the politics of principle, and ruled out any possibility of either a regional front or the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance coming to power after May 23.

"Sadly, some of them are very weak on politics of principle," he told PTI in an interview.

"Transactional politics for them dictated something different before the election. It may dictate something different after the election," he said, "But the point really is people should shift from transactional to principle politics."
Asked, nonetheless, to comment if Congress would support a front of regional parties, Khurshid said, "You (regional parties) are abusing Congress and hoping that Congress would support you. Does that make sense?
"Of course people have asked him whether he wants to become the prime minister and he has said if people want 'why not'. But that doesn't mean he is demanding prime ministership."