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Congress too demanding, alliance not possible: AAP MP Sanjay Singh
Sanjay Singh of AAP says that while Congress wants three seats in Delhi, it is unwilling to budge in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Goa.
New Delhi: Despite weeks of speculation about a possible alliance for Lok Sabha 2019 election between Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress, no headway has been made till a day before first phase of voting.
On the eve of first phase of voting in the crucial election, Sanjay Singh of AAP announced an alliance was not possible because Congress is demanding too many seats in Delhi while unwilling to part with seats elsewhere. "They don't have any MLA or MP in Delhi but are demanding three seats here," he told news agency ANI on Wednesday. "In Punjab, we (AAP) have four MPs and 20 MLAs but Congress does not want to share seats there. Same is the situation in Haryana, Goa and Chandigarh. So, this alliance is not possible."
Singh also accused that the Congress appears to be in favour of helping BJP in Delhi. "Congress is not in favour of alliance and it seems they want to benefit BJP. AAP will contest and win all seven seats in Delhi," he said.
While AAP has accused Congress of being too demanding in Delhi but unwilling to reciprocate elsewhere, the party had also lost out on alliance partners in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. After being wooed for weeks, Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party had dealt an embarrassing snub to Congress and joined hands with nemesis Akhilesh Yadav and his Samajwadi Party.
Many political analysts felt that an alliance with AAP could be a different electoral tale even though Delhi Congress leaders were quite open in their reservations. Within Congress, there was a rift between Delhi and national leaders over whether to join with AAP or not. Even as Rahul Gandhi tried to silence people within his party opposed to the idea, AAP chief and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had said it matters little to his party whether Congress offers a hand of alliance.
Sources had told Zee News last week that AAP has put forth conditions for a political alliance - the party wants Congress to openly declare its support to full statehood for Delhi and if Congress agrees to jointly fight in Haryana and Chandigarh. (Read full report here)