Cong efforts to woo smaller parties in UP bearing fruits

After failing to strike a seat sharing pact with the SP, Congress efforts to forge an alliance with smaller political parties in Uttar Pradesh have started bearing fruits with the party entering into an alliance in six seats in the state.

The Congress has arrived at a seat adjustment with the Rashtriya Swabhiman Party of former minister R.K Chaudhary and Sarvodaya Kranti Party of Raja Ram Pal on some six seats where the party has not yet announced its candidates.

Sources in these smaller parties said that Jaunpur and Mohanlalganj seats besides Lakhimpur, Firozabad, Kairana and Akbarpur seats have been left for Rashtriya Swabhiman Party and Rashtriya Sarvodaya party of which candidates have already been decided for Jaunpur, Mohanlalganj and Akbarpur seats.

It was because of this commitment that the Congress did not field local and Bhojpuri film star, Ravi Kishan, who was all set to contest the Jaunpur seat, sources said.

The Congress would be extending support to Pal on Akbarpur seat and Chaudhary and Sarvodya Kranti Party candidate Raj Patel on Mohanlalganj and Jaunpur seats respectively, sources said.

Though several rounds of talks were also held with Sonelal Patel of Apna Dal with the mediation of Chaudhary, an understanding could not be reached with him following clash on some seats like Pratapgarh where the Congress has a strong candidate in the form of former MP, Rajkumari Ratna Singh who has been given a ticket again, sources said.

Chaudhary, who would be contesting from Mohanlalgaunj, said his party has decided to withdraw its nominees from Faizabad and Barabanki seats where the Congress has a stronger candidate.   

The talks for some other seats was still on with Congress which has till date announced candidates on 56 seats of the 80 in the state, sources said, adding the new lists would take care of the interests of these parties.   

These smaller political parties having areas of influence in pockets and in certain caste dominated areas had earlier floated a front for contesting elections but since the talks for Lok Sabha polls with the Congress started it has disintegrated leaving just four parties including Rashtriya Swabhiman Party, Sarvodaya Kranti Party, Apna Dal and the National Lokhind Party of former minister Masood together.

Notwithstanding the understanding with the Congress these four would be campaigning at the individual level for each other and Patel would be campaigning for Chaudhary and vice versa, sources said.

Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh had also recently said that seat adjustment talks were on with the smaller parties and a formal announcement is likely in a couple of days.