Congress to go it alone in the next Lok Sabha polls in Bihar

The Congress on Wednesday said that it will stay equidistant from the RJD and JD-U in the next Lok Sabha polls. "We are equidistant from both parties in Bihar. Our mood is to go it alone in Bihar in the forthcoming elections. Nothing has been decided yet on aligning with any political party.
We want to employ 'Ekla Chalo' (walk alone) policy in Bihar," Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed said on Wednesday. Congress made the statement on a day Bihar CM Nitish Kumar was in New Delhi to discuss his state's annual plan size with Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia. The statement cannot but be discomforting for Lalu, who is hoping for a pact with the Congress. It the JD(U)-BJP alliance ends, a pact with the Congress could make RJD a formidable competitor for the Muslim votes, assiduously wooed by Nitish.