No post-poll alliance in Bihar: Cong
With polling in Bihar coming to an end, Congress today said it will not have any post-poll tie up with any party or alliance in the state.
With polling in Bihar coming to an end, Congress on Saturday said it will not have any post-poll tie up with any party or alliance in the state.
"Congress still has the same view on the issue of alliance in the state, which it was having before the assembly elections commenced in the state.
"Either we will make a government of our own or we will sit in the opposition. We are not going to give support to anybody," party spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed told reporters.
To a specific question on whether the party could think of extending support to Lalu Prasad's RJD and Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP in the eventuality of the opposition combine in Bihar running short of majority for few seats, Ahmed repeated thrice, "there is no question of supporting Lalu ji".
In the middle of the six-phase elections in the state, senior RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh had said that the party should try to seek Congress support to form a government in the state it the alliance runs short of few seats.
The last phase of polling ended today and counting of votes will be held on November 24.
Congress has contested this assembly election alone.
This is the second time in last ten years that Congress had contested Bihar assembly elections alone.
In 2000 assembly election, when Congress had contested without any alliance, the party had fared badly with as many as around fifty of its candidates getting less than 1000 votes.
Congress allied with LJP in February 2005 election and in October 2005, it went with RJD.
In both the elections, Congress could win nine or ten seats only.
However, there is a view in the party that it can make a turn around in Bihar in long term if it maintains equidistance from all the major political players in the state.
A section in the party also believes that Rahul Gandhi's charishma would help the party consolidate its base in Bihar as had happened in Uttar Pradesh.