Cong readies for tie-up with JMM & didi
Cong has rejected its Jharkhand units proposal for snapping ties with JMM.
By ET Bureau |
NEW DELHI: Congress, which has kicked off efforts to consolidate its state-level alliances, has rejected its Jharkhand units proposal for snapping ties with JMM.
The party, which is keen on ���broad secular alliance��� in the state is keen that Ram Vilas Paswan���s LJP, too, form part of the JMM-RJD-Congress alliance in the state.
The state unit had opposed the idea of a political deal with JMM. According to the state unit, an alliance with a ���discredited��� JMM will not bring much to the Congress��� political table. But with the NDA poised to fare well in the coming Lok Sabha polls, the central leadership is against any splintering of the ���secular vote.���
The RJD, which has seven MLAs, can swing UPA���s fortune in districts lying contiguous to Bihar such as Palamu, Chatra and Koderma. Although LJP did not win a single assembly seat in the state, its entry into the front will send a signal to Dalits.
The Congress��� state unit���s assessment is not off the mark as experience suggest that the party had ceded considerable ground to NDA because of its alliance with JMM. The JMM is seen by the Congress��� core voter as a ���corrupt and shifty��� organisation, which does not have permanent political allegiance.
Incidentally, in all the by-elections, the Congress was handed out miserable defeats by the electorate, leading to cries for decoupling itself from JMM. But political considerations at the Centre is prompting the leaders to stay in the company of JMM.
In neighbouring West Bengal, the Congress is readying itself for an alliance with the Trinamool Congress. Although Trinamool Congress has been critical of the state Congress��� reluctance to toe its line on political and economic issues, Ms Mamata Banerjee���s only remaining political option is the Congress.
The Trinamool Congress, which is networking with hard-line Muslim outfits in the state, cannot afford to open negotiations with any other organisation.
Sources in the Congress said the seat sharing talks will begin next week. Given results of the panchayat elections, leaders of the Trinamool Congress are confident that the alliance with the Congress will be a favourable one.
The party, which is keen on ���broad secular alliance��� in the state is keen that Ram Vilas Paswan���s LJP, too, form part of the JMM-RJD-Congress alliance in the state.
The state unit had opposed the idea of a political deal with JMM. According to the state unit, an alliance with a ���discredited��� JMM will not bring much to the Congress��� political table. But with the NDA poised to fare well in the coming Lok Sabha polls, the central leadership is against any splintering of the ���secular vote.���
The RJD, which has seven MLAs, can swing UPA���s fortune in districts lying contiguous to Bihar such as Palamu, Chatra and Koderma. Although LJP did not win a single assembly seat in the state, its entry into the front will send a signal to Dalits.
The Congress��� state unit���s assessment is not off the mark as experience suggest that the party had ceded considerable ground to NDA because of its alliance with JMM. The JMM is seen by the Congress��� core voter as a ���corrupt and shifty��� organisation, which does not have permanent political allegiance.
Incidentally, in all the by-elections, the Congress was handed out miserable defeats by the electorate, leading to cries for decoupling itself from JMM. But political considerations at the Centre is prompting the leaders to stay in the company of JMM.
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In neighbouring West Bengal, the Congress is readying itself for an alliance with the Trinamool Congress. Although Trinamool Congress has been critical of the state Congress��� reluctance to toe its line on political and economic issues, Ms Mamata Banerjee���s only remaining political option is the Congress.
The Trinamool Congress, which is networking with hard-line Muslim outfits in the state, cannot afford to open negotiations with any other organisation.
Sources in the Congress said the seat sharing talks will begin next week. Given results of the panchayat elections, leaders of the Trinamool Congress are confident that the alliance with the Congress will be a favourable one.
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