Sheila Dikshit calls meet with DPCC working presidents

Delhi Congress Chief Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday called an urgent meeting with the three working presidents of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee amid a buzz that the party's top leadership is mulling options to align with the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi.

The party leaders of the Delhi unit, however, maintained that there was no talk of an alliance during the meeting.

"An urgent meeting was called and it was decided that the selection of candidates should begin. Around 70 applications have been received by the party from Delhi Congress leaders for seven seats in Delhi," a senior party leader said.

He said,"A screening committee of the party including Dikshit has to shortlist names from among the applications and send a list of 2-3 names per seat to top leadership for final announcement."

The meeting with the three working presidents Devender Yadav, Haroon Yusuf and Rajesh Lilothia, at Diskhit's residence, comes in the backdrop of Congress mulling its options to align with the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi in its bid to defeat the BJP in Lok Sabha elections, days after having unanimously decided to go it alone in Delhi.

Uncertainty has been persisting in the Delhi Congress over a pre-poll tie-up with the AAP after Dikshit and her three working presidents wrote to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi against the alliance.

In a letter written last week, Dikshit along with Yusuf, Yadav and Lilothia protested a recent phone survey to gauge workers' mood on the alliance.