NEW DELHI: With former Delhi Chief Minister Madan Lal Khurana out of contention from city politics, the focus is once again on formation of a Third Front in Delhi. With parties like Rahstriya Lok Dal, Nationalist Congress Party, Janata Dal (S), Jan Morcha and Lok Janshakti Party showing signs of coming together in Delhi, the heat could well be felt by the Congress as also by the Bharatiya Janata Party in any upcoming elections.

A beginning for the formation of a Third Front well before the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections due early next year has already been made with the newly appointed president of the Delhi Nationalist Congress Party, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, holding discussions with the heads of these parties for forging a new alternative in Delhi politics. Mr. Bidhuri has already proved his political skills in the 1991 Lok Sabha polls by triggering the defeat of the Delhi strongman H.K.L. Bhagat and again in 1993 by putting up Janata Dal candidates in the Assembly polls that proved to be the undoing of the Congress.

The Congress lost in as many as 23 constituencies due to the presence of the Janata Dal candidates resulting in the BJP coming to power. The Janata Dal managed to secure six Assembly seats at that time.

"We are going to join hands with Mr. Bidhuri and other secular and like-minded parties to put up a front against the BJP and the Congress who have failed to provide effective administration and policies to the people of Delhi.

The new front will contest elections on all seats in the MCD polls and then forge an alliance with other parties also for the Assembly polls,'' says Delhi Assembly Deputy Speaker and Janata Dal (S) president Shoaib Iqbal.

Mr. Bidhuri is firm that he has the blessings of former Prime Minister V.P. Singh to forge this new alliance in Delhi. Mr. Bidhuri said he had already had talks with the Jan Morcha national president and Member of Parliament, Raj Babbar, on the future strategy for Delhi and said there was no such attempt to target the Congress as such.

On the issue of joining hands with Mr. Khurana, Mr. Bidhuri said it was not possible to enrol Mr. Khurana in the new formation as he is aligned with Uma Bharti's party.

There is no place for Ms. Bharti in the new front and therefore Mr. Khurana is automatically out of contention.

"Both the Congress and the BJP are one and the same for us. The people of Delhi are suffering due to the wrong policies of the two parties and it is time for a change. We will ensure that all sections get representation in the share of power in future,'' he remarked.

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