No post-poll alliance with any party: Rahul

I go to their houses,drink water from their wells and sometimes fall sick.

Putting an end to speculation of a post-poll tie-up between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress in UP,AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said the Congress would not enter into an alliance with any party in the state.

Addressing a public meeting in Menhdawal constituency of Sant Kabir Nagar,Rahul said the Chief Minister would be from the Congress. Urging the people to vote for the Congress,he said: You have shown faith in my grandmother,in my father,now show your faith in me as well.

Long subjected to Oppositions barbs for his night stays in Dalits houses,Rahul used the same to target BSP and SP chiefs. Addressing a gathering at Itwa,he said: Has Mayawati or Mulayam Singh gone to the house of a poor man in the past five years? I go to their houses,drink water from their wells and sometimes fall sick. I say it is good and I should fall sick more often because people of Uttar Pradesh are falling sick.

Maintaining that SP and BSP leaders dont interact with labourers or farmers to understand their problems and dont respect the people,he said,Hotel food is not as delicious as what I eat in poor peoples houses because it is cooked with love. These people SP and BSP chiefs do not go to these houses.

Though its decision to allot the ticket to Mohammad Muqeem,who had unsuccessfully contested against Congress leader Jagdambika Pal in the last Lok Sabha elections,had caused heartburn in a section of the party,Mauqueem is now emerging as the frontrunner in Itwa. Samajwadi Party candidate and sitting MLA Mata Prasad Pandey is another strong contender for the seat.

The SP is said to be witnessing the apathy of Muslims in this area because the party has not fielded a single candidate from the community from any of the five seats in Siddhartha Nagar.

Rahul steered clear of any caste or community specific issues,choosing to focus on lack of development in the state in the past 22 years and asking people to give the Congress a chance. In the past 22 years,no power plant has been set up here and Mulayam Singh Yadav talks about giving free electricity. Will he bring electricity from the sky? Next time you ask Mulayam Singh to turn the blue sky yellow. He will promise you even that. What I am driving at is that UP cannot run on promises, he said.