Amid reports of cracks in the INDIA bloc alliance, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday, January 13, made it clear that the alliance was made only for national elections.
“There has never been any talk regarding state and local elections in the INDIA alliance. Everyone will meet and decide on this (local body elections) in the next 10 days,” the veteran politician said.
His statements come after Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut recently said that the INDIA bloc and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliances – comprising Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP(SP) – were only meant for Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections.
On the upcoming Delhi elections, Raut had said that Delhi was a stronghold for the Aam Admi Party (AAP) and Congress.
“In Delhi, the Congress and AAP think that they are big powers… In Maharashtra also we have said that the local body elections are of the workers. It is difficult to form an alliance there, but our alliance will be intact in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha (Maharashtra). Being the bigger party in the alliance, it is the responsibility of Congress to keep us together,” Raut said.
Sharad Pawar has echoed Raut’s statements and wished the best for Congress and AAP for the Delhi elections.
“INDIA bloc was meant only for national elections. Delhi is (Arvind) Kejriwal’s base. The people of Delhi have given the majority to his party twice in the elections and that is why it would have been good if we could have done something by taking them into confidence,” Pawar said.
Pawar and Raut are not the only leaders who have restrained from taking any sides of either AAP or Congress. Another INDIA bloc ally, the National Conference and its chief Omar Abdullah had expressed dismay over the lack of clarity regarding its leadership and agenda, saying the alliance should be wound up if it was meant only for the parliamentary elections.
After the Assembly elections in Delhi, they should call all the alliance members for a meeting. If this alliance was only for the parliamentary elections, it should be wound up, and we will work separately. But if it is meant for Assembly elections as well, we will have to sit together and work collectively,” the Jammu and Kashmir chief minister told reporters.
