Seat-sharing talks between INDIA bloc partners are still
hanging in a large number of States as Congress – the biggest Opposition party –
is waiting for the results of the upcoming elections. They are expecting their
tally to go up and then the Congress can have a better bargaining power
vis-à-vis other constituents, said a leader.
The Mumbai Resolution, which was taken on August 31 and
September 1, had assured that “seat-sharing arrangements in different States
will be initiated immediately and concluded at the earliest in a collaborative
spirit of give-and-take”.
However, a senior Congress leader argued, “It didn’t
give a deadline, so, it can start after the polls.”
The leader added, “If we win 3 or 4 of the 5 States,
we will have better elbow room to negotiate seats with our allies. But if we
get one or two States, it will spell trouble for us in the seat negotiations.”
Assembly elections in five States – Rajasthan, Madhya
Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram – will be held on November 7. The
Grand Old Party is already ruling Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. So, it’s hopeful
to increase its tally.
“We were not together earlier. We could not put common
candidates in each seat and (Prime Minister) Modi took advantage… We have
arrived at a conclusion and an organisation has been formed. We will start
seat-sharing arrangements by accommodating everyone. There will be no hurdle,”
former Bihar CM and a crucial INDIA leader Lalu Prasad said earlier.
During a few rounds of internal discussions, INDIA
bloc divided the States into three categories: A, B and C.
A category States are those with pre-existing pacts
(Maharashtra, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, J&K).
B category States are those where the Congress is the
undisputed leader of the INDIA group (MP, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka,
Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh).
C category includes contentious States like Delhi,
Punjab, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh, where intense negotiations are expected.
The alliance had planned to complete seat distribution
in A and B category States by October to allot enough time to C category to
reach a favourable arrangement.
“But the delay in seat talks has jeopardised our
initial plan,” said the second leader.
Few days back, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav
was miffed at Congress as the former failed to reach a seat sharing agreement
in Madhya Pradesh.
Subsequently, Yadav dubbed the Congress stance a
‘betrayal’ and hinted at similar treatment towards the other party in Uttar
Pradesh.
“If Congress didn’t want to give seats (in MP), then
they should have said it before. Today, SP is fighting only on seats where it
has its own organisation. Now after Madhya Pradesh, I know that the INDIA
alliance is for the (Parliamentary) elections at the national level. If
Congress continues to behave like this, then who will stand with them? If we
will fight against the BJP with confusion in our minds, then we won’t
succeed,” said Yadav on Friday.
NE Watch Desk
