Congress yet to take call on backing non-BJP govt

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi may have ruled out support to a Third Front in forming the next government but the party has not abandoned its plans to stop BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi from coming to power.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi may have ruled out support to a Third Front in forming the next government but the party has not abandoned its plans to stop BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi from coming to power.

Though the party has not formally deliberated on the issue yet, there are divergent views on it. Finance minister P Chidambaram on Thursday said the political scenario in 2014 is vastly different from that in 1989 when Rajiv Gandhi chose to sit in the opposition despite the Congress having won about 190 seats.

“Whichever party is in a position to form a stable government should come forward and discharge its responsibility. You cannot run away from the responsibility. This country cannot afford an election every three months,” he said.

Chidambaram, however, insisted that the Congress has a “very good chance” of forming the next government under its leadership with some allies.

“If the Congress is in a position to form a government, it will come forward,” he said.

The remarks were widely interpreted as a clear indication that the Congress has not given up its intention to form the next government even if its numbers are reduced.

A Congress functionary said the party is not averse to keeping the issue of leadership open in order to stop Modi. “It all depends on the numbers we get,” he said, suggesting that it would be impractical for any party with 20 seats leading another with more than 100.

But there is another section, mainly comprising old timers, that favours not only supporting but also participating in the next government. Leaders belonging to this section argue that the Congress cannot abandon its role as a responsible national party to ensure a stable government is in place in the national interest. “For that, we are ready to work with all like-minded parties,” a Congress leader said.

And there is another group that wants the Congress to sit in the opposition if it fails to get enough seats to form a government.