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Hoping that a Karnataka-like situation will emerge after the Lok Sabha election results come out on May 23, the Congress is reaching out to its allies and like-minded parties.
UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi has written to her party’s allies — the DMK, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Janata Dal (Secular) and others — inviting them to attend a meeting to assess the political situation on May 23.
Congress is also making efforts to bring the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the Biju Janata Dal, the YSRCP and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to the meeting.
Also read:On May 23 it will be “bye-bye” for Modi, claims Rahul Gandhi
The meeting will apparently discuss strategies to pre-empt BJP’s chances of forming the government if the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) falls short of the majority and the BJP becomes the single largest party. Going by precedence, the President will invite the single largest party to form the government if no pre-poll alliance stakes claim for forming the government. The Congress hopes to get the support of other parties so that a list of MPs who support a non-BJP government can be submitted to the President.
The party is hopeful of support fromthe TRS and the YSRCP. TRS leader and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had met Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and DMK chief MK Stalin. Stalin and Kumaraswamy had projected Congress President Rahul Gandhi as the next Prime Minister.
TRS insiders are indicating that the party’s first preference will be a non-Congress government at the Centre. The TRS is apparently holding informal discussions with the BJP and the NDA. The party, however, will weigh various options before taking a final decision.
The support extended by Congress to the TMC after incidents of violence and the rdecision of the Election Commission has eased the tension between the two.
Main objective
Opposition leader in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said in Patna that the Congress’ main objective is to unseat the Modi-led government and Congress does not have any problem if it does not get the Prime Minister’s post.
“We have already made our stand clear. If a consensus is made in favour of the Congress, then the party will take the leadership, but our aim has always been that the NDA government should not come to power. We will go with the unanimous decision,” Azad said.
For more: Elections 2019
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