No takers for Mulayams third front idea

The statement triggered a political debate in the state as well as Delhi. Although NCP president Sharad Pawar remained silent,AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh said,We work according to the situation,Whatever he Yadav has said is not something new.

In response to questions regarding the SP chiefs statement about UPA constituents leaving the Congress one after another,Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi said,We respect our allies a lot. But whenever it is about the country,it becomes our priority. We kept the countrys interest above everything as governments come and go. Congress party is not after power. It does not do politics for power,but for its principles. He noted how the Congress lost allies due to its principled stand on Indo-US nuclear deal,FDI in multi-brand retail and Sri Lankan Tamil issue.

BJP leader Balbir Punj said a third front will be a non-starter. I dont think any such coalition will come up, he said. NDA ally JD U agreed with BJPs view. We do not think there is any scope for third front, said JDU leader Devesh Chandra Thakur.

Senior CPI leader A B Bardhan said there was nothing wrong in the SP chiefs statement but felt the chances of such a front do not seem to be bright at the moment. He said parties opposed to the Congress and BJP can come together on the basis of a programme and form a front in many states.

Why in some states. My view is that such a front can be possible in many states where there are parties which are opposed to both the Congress and BJP, he said. But at the national level,he said,such a front may be possible only after the polls.

CPM general secretary Prakash Karat has already made it clear that he does not see the possibility of a third front emerging before the Lok Sabha polls.