Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi: The Congress party announced on Thursday that it will not form an alliance with its INDIA bloc partner, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), for the upcoming assembly elections in Haryana and Delhi.
“There is no INDIA ‘janbandhan’ in Punjab. In Haryana, we had given one seat to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Lok Sabha polls but I don’t think that INDIA janbandhan will be there for assembly polls. In Delhi, the AAP itself has said that INDIA janbandhan will not be there for assembly polls,” Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh told PTI.
Jharkhand, Haryana, and Maharashtra are slated for polls later this year, while assembly elections in Delhi will be held early next year.
When specifically asked about the potential for an alliance in Haryana and Delhi, Ramesh stated, “There is no scope (for alliance) in Delhi and Haryana.”
Last month, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Gopal Rai clarified that the party’s alliance with Congress was only for the Lok Sabha elections. “The INDIA bloc was only for contesting the Lok Sabha polls. Several parties fought elections together, and AAP was also a part of it. As of now, there is no alliance for the Delhi Assembly polls,” he told PTI.
The Congress and AAP had contested the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi together, with Congress running on three seats and AAP on four. However, the coalition did not secure any seats in the capital.
A few days ago, a Congress leader blamed the AAP for the alliance’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi. “I believe if we had not contested the elections with them, then Congress’ seats would have increased. Because of the Excise scam, Congress suffered a loss in the Lok Sabha elections,” Congress leader Abhishek Dutt told ANI.
