In Blow to Congress, Mayawati Rules Out Poll Pacts in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan

New Delhi: In yet another blow to the Congress, BSP chief Mayawati on Wednesday ruled out any alliance with the party in the coming Assembly polls in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, a decision that could also impact the opposition’s plan for a grand alliance against the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. “The Congress is two steps ahead of the BJP in attempts to finish the BSP politically. In the interest of the BSP movement, it has been decided that the party would not ally with the Congress in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan at any cost,” she told a press conference.

The BSP chief’s announcement comes nearly a fortnight after her statement ruling out an alliance with the Congress in Chhattisgarh where she tied up with former chief minister Ajit Jogi’s party Janata Congress for the Assembly elections due next month. Asked whether the BSP would align with the Congress in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Mayawati said, “I have said everything about this.”

Reading from a prepared statement, Mayawati said that the Congress attitude was not to defeat the BJP but to weaken opposition parties which is unfortunate. “The Congress had adopted similar tactics in the past and was continuing it now. Even now it was not trying to change itself.” “I feel that Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi’s intentions for Congress-BSP alliance are honest. However some Congress leaders are sabotaging this,” she said. Mayawati said Digvijaya Singh, who is an agent of the BJP, has been giving statements that she has a lot of pressure from the Centre and so she did not want an alliance with the Congress. “This is baseless,” she said. “Congress leaders like Digvijaya Singh do not wish for a Congress-BSP alliance. They are afraid of agencies like ED, CBI.” (IANS)