Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar Thursday said his party is ready for talks with Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar for an alliance for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly polls to avoid division of "secular" votes.
He said Ambedkar, who heads the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), should come forward for holding pre-poll alliance talks with the Congress.
Addressing a press conference at Press Club here, Wadettiwar also said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had worked very hard in the recent Lok Sabha elections, but partymen fell short in their efforts.
Asked about Ambedkar's reported statement that his front will leave only 40 assembly seats (of the total 288) for the Congress in case of an alliance, Wadettiwar, "We do not know what is going on his mind."