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Congress goes into damage control mode

Special Correspondent

Bid to mollify Trinamool, RJD, LJP

“We’ve agreement with Trinamool and that will remain post-poll”
RJD, LJP peeved at Rahul’s appreciation of Nitish

NEW DELHI: The Congress went into damage control mode on Wednesday to mollify three “allies” — the Trinamool Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Lok Jan Shakti Party — which are smarting under party general secretary Rahul Gandhi’s positive remarks about their key opponents in their States.

Briefing journalists here, Congress media in-charge M. Veerappa Moily said there was no question of the party deserting its existing “allies” to prop up a Congress-led government at the Centre.

About Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee’s reported statement that she would walk out of the alliance in West Bengal if the Congress joined hands with the Left parties, he said she had clarified to the party in-charge of the State, K. Keshava Rao, that she was misquoted.

“We have an agreement with the Trinamool Congress and that will remain post-poll,” Mr. Moily said. As for the RJD and the LJP, which are peeved at Mr. Gandhi’s appreciation of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Mr. Moily said both parties were Congress allies and the Janata Dal (United) was part of the National Democratic Alliance.

Conceding that pre-poll alliances with the two parties could not be worked out, he was confident that the Congress, the RJD and the LJP would be able to function together in the UPA once again.

“We’ll cross 272-mark”

Earlier at the official press conference, Congress spokesman Ashwini Kumar said the party and its allies would cross the 272-mark.

“However, if we fall short, we will try and speak to like-minded parties but not necessarily at the cost of existing alliances.”

Though the Congress went into damage control mode, party leaders maintained that Mr. Gandhi’s statements had not put the party in a spot. The Congress counter is that he was quoted out of context. “His was a statesmanly statement,” was Mr. Moily’s explanation.

Keeping flock in UPA

The Congress also remained confident of being able to keep its flock in the UPA — even those which walked out of State-based alliances — intact. The logic of the political situation will prevent the RJD and the LJP from going to the Third Front, is the Congress calculation.

As one Congress leader put it, “Unless Lalu Prasad or Ram Vilas Paswan is offered the Prime Minister’s post, they are unlikely to join the Third Front. They would rather remain Ministers under Manmohan Singh instead of working under a Mayawati or…”

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