LUCKNOW: In yet another strong snub to the Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati and Samajwadi party president Akhilesh Yadav on Monday rejected the Grand Old Party’s gesture of leaving seven seats in Uttar Pradesh as quid pro quo for the alliance not fielding candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, the constituencies of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, respectively.
Making it clear in no uncertain terms that the alliance was capable of defeating the BJP on its own, both the leaders accused the Congress of creating confusion among the voters and their cadres by giving an impression that the party had a tacit understanding with the alliance.
UP Congress chief Raj Babbar had on Sunday announced that his party would leave seven seats for the SP, BSP and RLD alliance as a gesture of reciprocation for the SP-BSP leaving Amethi and Rae Bareli for the Congress.
In a bid to dispel any impression about an ‘electoral understanding’ that the Congress announcement might have created, both Mayawati and Akhilesh, in a series of tweets, cautioned the party against spreading misunderstanding.
“The Congress is free to put up candidates in all Uttar Pradesh seats; our alliance is strong enough to defeat the BJP,” Mayawati tweeted.
Cautioning her cadre, she said in another tweet, “Our supporters should not fall for doubts being created by the Congress.”
She reiterated that the SP-BSP had no understanding with the Congress.
Staunch enemy?
Mayawati has hardly let any opportunity go without expressing annoyance with the Congress and refused to have an alliance with it in Assembly polls last year.
Akhilesh used to have a soft approach till aligning with BSP. Later, Akhilesh also tweeted on the same lines: “In Uttar Pradesh, the SP, BSP and RLD alliance is capable of the defeating the BJP. The Congress party should not spread any kind of confusion.”