Will contest Chhattisgarh, MP polls with SP: Gondwana party chief
The Gondwana Gantantra Party will fight the Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, its chief Heera Singh Markam said Sunday, as he ruled out a tie-up with the Congress in the two poll-bound states. He accused the Congress of "dilly-dallying" in alliance talks and said now it was too late for a tie-up. Here's more.
Handle in our hands, pedal in their control: Markam
The Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) will fight on 60 seats in Chhattisgarh, while the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party (SP) will contest 18 seats, said Markam. Referring to the SP's election symbol of the cycle, he said the handle is in their hands and pedal in SP's control" The GGP holds significant influence over several tribal-dominated constituencies in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.
None of the responsible office-bearer Congress-leader talked to me: Markam
"If somebody doesn't want to talk...and even if they do and say take one seat or three seats, then how can the talks proceed," Markam said as none of the responsible office-bearers or senior leaders of the Congress party in Chhattisgarh have spoken with him. Markam also said talks with the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) could not be reached on seat-sharing.
We aren't ruling-out the possibility of an alliance: Jyotiraditya Scindia
Markam's remarks come just days after senior Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia, when asked about a possible tie-up with the SP and GGP, had said, "We are in touch with all possible partners, our ultimate goal is to beat the Bharatiya Janata Party." "We are not currently ruling out the possibility of an alliance," said the senior Congress leader.
Vote counting in MP, Chattisgarh will start on December 11
Markam asserted that the GGP's alliance with SP in both Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh was on a strong footing. In Madhya Pradesh's northern areas closer to Uttar Pradesh, SP will contest, while in the south, GGP will fight, he said. Elections for 230 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh will be held on November 28 and counting of votes will be held on December 11.
Assembly seats for Samajwadi Party and Gondwana Gantantra Party
The SP will contest around 50 seats, while GGP will contest on around 70 constituencies in Madhya Pradesh. Chhattisgarh has 90 Assembly seats and will be the first to go to polls in two phases on November 12 and 20.
