Congress conclave: Uttar Pradesh party leaders divided over alliance

Amethi is a Congress bastion and also the Lok Sabha constituency of Rahul Gandhi.

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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi (PTI photo)

On a day Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi slammed the Centre’s demonetisation move Wednesday, Congressmen from Uttar Pradesh who were here to attend the conclave were worried over something else — alliance with the SP for the Assembly polls. The Indian Express spoke to a cross-section of state Congress leaders. All of them began with saying how demonetisation has hit the common man. Asked whether demonetisation would affect the elections, they say it might, but added that for the Congress, strategy is going to be the key. Some even said the party could not take up the issue properly. Opinion on a possible alliance with SP appeared divided.

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“Many people believe the rich is affected and are happy with that…this is the mindset of Indians,” Shiv Bajrang Singh, vice-president of Amethi district Congress committee, said. Amethi is a Congress bastion and also the Lok Sabha constituency of Rahul. Singh believes a Congress-SP alliance will benefit the party like the grand alliance in Bihar. Ask how the party will defend such an alliance after opposing SP for the last five years, he said “Lalu and Nitish used to fight for years…have they not joined hands?”

Cut to Harbeer Singh Bobby, a Congress leader from Bareilly. He said, “We have been calling SP a party of goondas…accusing them of misusing power…tomorrow if we have to join hands…what will we tell the people?”

The party has 28 MLAs in the 403-member House. Having last been in power in 1989, the Congress tally has ranged between 22 and 46 since 1991.

Gyanendra Pratap Singh, vice-president of the party’s state unit, admitted that the party is weak in UP. “Talks about alliance have shattered the morale of workers,” he said and added that it is now up to the high command to decide. “The BJP rose to prominence because of alliances from the Jan Sangh days. The situation in UP is such that all secular forces should come together and give a fight,” he told The Indian Express.

Sushil Chaudhary, a state Congress committee member, felt that people were looking for an alternative to BJP, which had walked away with 73 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats.

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Mufti Munis Hussain, another state unit member, said the time was ripe for Congress to play on the front foot by taking advantage of “public disenchantment” with the BJP. Hussain foresaw a hung assembly, followed by a “secular alliance to keep the BJP out of power”. Bijnor City Congress president Meenu Goel said, “Congress workers have been working very hard for making party programmes successful and they would be disappointed if we fight a limited number of seats”.

Naseeruddin alias Nathu, a participant in the conclave from Ladupura Bhisham village, said the Congress could win around 100 seats without help from another party. “Options for forging an alliance should be explored only after the elections,” he said.