AAP-Cong alliance talks headed for break down

The talks on pre-poll alliance between the Congress and AAP in Delhi for the Lok Sabha elections headed for a break down on Wednesday even as a section insisted that the last word has not been said on the issue.

Senior leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, the lead negotiator from the AAP side, said the Congress was not in favour of an alliance and his party would contest all seats in Delhi.

"In Punjab, we have four MPs and 20 MLAs and Congress doesn't want to share seats there. Same is the situation in Haryana, Goa and Chandigarh. In Delhi, where they don’t have any MLA or MP, they are demanding three seats. So, this alliance is not possible. The 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," Singh said.

AICC Secretary in-charge of Delhi P C Chacko said AAP alone cannot defeat the BJP though he said he welcomed Singh's statement.

The pro-alliance sections in both the parties said that the last word on the issue has not been said and Singh's statements could be part of AAP's pressure tactics to make the Congress agree to its demand for three seats in Haryana.

Earlier in the day, Congress Treasurer Ahmed Patel, who has been supporting the alliance talks, met Delhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit, who is against any tie-up, to discuss the political developments in the capital.

Dikshit refused to comment on the meeting, saying the issue of alliance was dragging for long and it would be good if the prevailing uncertainty is over. "Let us hope so," Dikshit was quoted by PTI when asked if the possibility of alliance with the AAP was over.

With the notification for the May 12 polls in Delhi to be issued next Tuesday, the Congress' Central Election Committee (CEC) is meeting on Thursday when it will discuss candidates for the polls.