Amid increasing discussion on whether there would be a Congress-Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alliance in Delhi, Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal on Monday traded barbs over the alliance.
Gandhi had announced on Twitter that while the Congress was willing to enter into an alliance with the AAP, Arvind Kejriwal had done a ‘U-turn’.
Minutes after Gandhi’s tweet, Kejriwal came out with his own, even more strongly worded tweet. Questioning Gandhi about what ‘U-turn’ he was talking about, Kejriwal said that the Congress president did not actually want a coalition. He also lashed out at Gandhi, saying that instead of saving the nation from PM Modi and Amit Shah, he was distributing the anti-Modi votes in Uttar Pradesh and other states.
Other AAP leaders also reacted to Gandhi’s tweet.
AAP's Gopal Rai also reacted to Rahul Gandhi's tweet, questioning why the Congress was not interested in an alliance with AAP in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, where the AAP had 18 seats.
AAP leader Sanjay Singh also questioned why the Congress didn’t want to stop the BJP in other states. “Is this how agreements happen? Why don't you (Congress) want to stop the BJP in other states,” he tweeted, talking about the Congress’ refusal to share seats in other states.
The Congress Delhi In-charge, PC Chacko reacted to this, saying that the two parties should come together first in Delhi.
“AAP is suggesting alliance on 18 seats beyond Delhi. Let us come together in Delhi first. Rahul ji said our doors are open, it should be done....Whatever decision is reached in one state cannot be replicated in the same way in other states,” he said, reported ANI.
Willing to Give Up Four Seats: Rahul Gandhi
Gandhi said that a Congress-AAP alliance in Delhi would mean “the rout of the BJP” but indicated that Kejriwal was not on board. In a tweet, Rahul Gandhi said that the Congress was even willing to give up four seats in Delhi to the AAP.
He added that their “doors are still open but the clock is running out”.
This latest development comes in the middle of a series of back-and-forth discussions about the alliance, with the Congress saying that a decision is yet to be taken.
On 14 April, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, when asked if discussions on the Congress-AAP alliance were still underway, had said that they were willing to do whatever was needed.
"The country is in danger. To save the country from Modi ji and Amit Shah ji's 'jodi', we are ready to do whatever is needed. Our efforts will continue till the end," he said, reported ANI.
Fresh Round of Talks Between AAP, Cong on Wednesday: Report
A fresh round of talks will be held between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress Wednesday, where the AAP will propose a tie-up in Delhi, Haryana and Chandigarh with a seat sharing ratio of 5:2 in the national capital, sources said, according to PTI.
Senior leader Ahmed Patel would hold talks on Congress' behalf and the AAP will be represented by party leader Sanjay Singh, they said.
The meeting would be mediated by NCP leader Sharad Pawar. This is the second meeting held in his presence over talks on alliance.
The sources said seat-sharing in Delhi has to be done in the ratio of 5:2, with five seats for the AAP and two seats for the Congress.
They said a response in the matter is awaited from the grand old party, PTI reported.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI.)
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