The flip-flop on the Congress-AAP alliance continued on Monday with the Congress president Rahul Gandhi alleging that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was making a U-turn on the alliance.
Gandhi took to Twitter saying that his party is still willing to give up four seats to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to seal an alliance in the national capital and ensure the "rout" of BJP.
Kejriwal retorted in a counter tweet, stating that Gandhi was just indulging in talks and was not serious about the alliance.
"An alliance between the Congress and the AAP in Delhi would mean the rout of the BJP. The Congress is willing to give up 4 Delhi seats to the AAP to ensure this," the Congress chief took to Twitter to post.
Gandhi had said the Congress' doors are still open but the "clock was running out".
"But, Mr Kejriwal has done yet another U-turn!," wrote Gandhi while putting the blame on the Delhi Chief Minister for the delay in sealing the alliance.
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"Our doors are still open, but the clock is running out," Rahul said putting the ball in the AAP's court and added #AbAAPkiBaari hashtag to his post.
In a prompt response, Kejriwal posted in Hindi "What U-turn are you talking about?"
"I am sorry that your tweet gives the impression that the alliance is just a show. Unfortunately, you are helping Modi to share the anti-Modi vote in UP and other states too," Kejriwal wrote on Twitter.
Meanwhile, the Congress leader PC Chacko said, "AAP is suggesting an alliance on 18 seats, beyond Delhi too. We feel Delhi is a state where AAP and Congress can defeat the BJP in all the seven seats. Congress-AAP should come together in Delhi first."
The Congress leader also said that the discussion between the two parties must continue because the aim of both the parties is to defeat the BJP.
"If it (alliance) is possible in any other place, I am not against it personally. I don't know the ground realities. The situation is different in every state. What has happened in one state cannot be replicated in other states," Chacko said while insisting that Congress-AAP alliance is capable of defeating the BJP in all the seven seats in Delhi.
However, the AAP refused to accept the assertion from the Congress party.
"If you really want to stop the BJP, then why are you leaving 31 seats (Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi) and talking just of the three seats," AAP leader Sanjay Singh told ANI.
"We have four MPs and 20 MLAs in Punjab. Congress is not ready to give us any seat there. In Haryana, where Congress has only one MLA, Congress is not ready to give us any seat there also. In Delhi, where Congress does not have a single MP or MLA, they are asking for three seats from us. Is that how you come to an understanding?" Singh questioned.
"Stopping BJP on 31 seats mean that the possibility of (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi returning to power is nil. But I am not able to understand why Congress wants to keep this possibility (of PM Modi returning to power) alive. If an alliance is done from Punjab to Delhi then a message will be conveyed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will go, the BJP will go," he said.
Both Chacko and Singh defended their respective leaders over their commitment to the alliance.
Asked if Congress president Rahul Gandhi had disapproved of an alliance between Congress and AAP, Chacko said, "Rahul did not disapprove. He (Rahul Gandhi) said our doors are open. We do not understand why there is a delay?"
"There is no U-turn. There is no question of going back. If (Delhi Chief Minister) Arvind Kejriwal wants to do (alliance) it, we can do it in one hour in Delhi," he added.
Singh also reminded that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that to stop the BJP from coming to power again, the party was ready for an alliance till the last moment.
"Yesterday itself, Arvind Kejriwal said that we are going to try to stop Modi-Shah duo till last moment. Then what U-turn is being talked about? Why is Congress trying to make BJP win," Singh said.
But, both AAP and Congress refused to completely rule out an alliance.
"No confusion, they should be ready for Delhi. My concern is the alliance. We want an alliance. We request that they (AAP) should be ready," he said refusing to "rule out" an alliance between two parties.
"If Congress is willing to stop BJP and makes a meaningful initiative, then we will respond positively. We are with every move to stop BJP. Why don't we want to stop BJP on 31 seats? If Rahul really wants to stop BJP and PM Modi then he should show some big heart. Think of 31 seats," Singh said while suggesting that all is not over about the alliance yet.
AAP has already announced its candidates for all seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi.
All seven Parliamentary seats in Delhi will go to polls in a single phase on May 12. Counting of votes will take place on May 23.