AAP, Congress discuss Lok Sabha seat-sharing amid alliance uncertainty

I.N.D.I.A. alliance partner Aam Adami Party (AAP), led by Arvind Kejriwal, and the Congress Party meet in the national capital on January 8, 2024, to discuss seat-sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha election in 2024. However, the decision on seat-sharing is yet to be taken, said senior Congress leader Mukul Wasnik.

While Ashok Gehlot said, “Every party has to make sacrifices when such a large alliance is formed. If the alliance succeeds, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not return to power the next time.”

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress held a meeting in New Delhi on January 8 to discuss seat-sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in the absence of the AAP national convenor, Arvind Kejriwal, and Punjab Chief Minister Baghwant Mann, although AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak and Delhi cabinet ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj attended the meeting.

The meeting was held to discuss seat-searing between the two parties for the states of Delhi and Punjab, which have 7 and 13 seats, respectively; however, it is yet to be announced in public how many seats Congress and AAP will fight for against the BJP.

Although sources aware of the matter said the Aam Adami party wants to contest five out of seven seats in Delhi, leaving two seats for Congress, The grand old party wants three seats in Delhi. According to sources, there was no discussion on Punjab seats in the meeting.

Following the meeting, senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, said that every party has to make sacrifices when such a large alliance is formed. He said that “if the alliance succeeds, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not return to power the next time.”

“Nobody should get involved in what anyone is saying. When such a large alliance is formed, everyone has to compromise and make sacrifices. Congress has taken the initiative, a good message has gone across the country, and the process is going ahead. If the alliance succeeds, then it should not come as a surprise that PM Modi won’t be able to form the government the next time,” Ghalot said.

However, Congress leader Mukul Wasnik termed the discussions “very fruitful” and said that discussions will take place in the future with AAP as it is an important part of the opposition alliance. He added that the meeting was very meaningful. Both parties put forward their views regarding the coordination of seats. Very soon, there will be coordination of seats with the Aam Aadmi Party. “We had a meeting for about 2 hours in a very good atmosphere. There has been discussion on how elections should be contested on a seat,” Wasnik added.

He further said, “Talks will go on, and we will meet again, and only then will we take a final call on seat share. Everything was discussed in detail. We will fight the elections together, and we will give a befitting reply to the BJP.” He added that it is not proper to reveal what transpired during the discussions.