No Final Decision on Seat Sharing As Congress, AAP Hold Talks, Decide to Meet Again
New Delhi: The Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) held their first formal meeting in New Delhi on Monday (January 8) to discuss seat-sharing arrangements under the INDIA alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and said that a final decision will be reached in the coming days.
The meeting was attended by members of the Congress’s national alliance committee – including convenor Mukul Wasnik and former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot – as well as by Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely.
The AAP delegation included Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak, Delhi minister Atishi and MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, Wasnik said that discussions were held on seat sharing as well as various other aspects of the upcoming elections, and that a final decision will be taken soon.
“We had a very good meeting. Senior AAP leaders were sent to today’s meeting for holding discussions with us on behalf of Arvind Kejriwal. The National Alliance Committee formed by the Congress president held discussions with AAP leaders for about two and a half hours on different issues relating to the Lok Sabha elections and seats,” he said.
“We have decided to hold further discussions and a final decision will be taken in the upcoming days. Discussion covered various issues.”
Wasnik did not, however, divulge details on any seat-sharing agreements that were reached or the seats that were under discussion.
“It is not proper to reveal what transpired during the discussions. You will have to wait for some time. We have already decided to contest elections together. Congress and AAP are a strong and important part of the INDIA alliance,” he said.
Speaking to The Wire, Lovely said that the discussion was “positive” and “preliminary”.
“It was only a preliminary meeting today and the seat sharing will be discussed when we meet again in maybe two days or within the next week. It was a very positive meeting today,” he said.
The meeting comes amid murmurs of discontent between the state units of the Congress and the AAP in Delhi and Punjab.
The parties have however said that the differences are not at the national level.
“There is complete unity and we are positive that the seat-sharing arrangements will be finalised soon,” said Bharadwaj to news agency ANI after the meeting.
#WATCH | Delhi: On AAP- Congress meeting over seat sharing ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Delhi Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj says, "We are absolutely positive that seats of INDIA bloc will be finalised soon." pic.twitter.com/WSACLWQhp8
— ANI (@ANI) January 8, 2024
The Wire has learnt that despite state-level differences, the Congress’s Delhi unit will abide by the high command's decision on working with the AAP.
Earlier on Monday, the Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit also said that the differences with the AAP are relating to the Delhi government and not at the national level.
“Our conflicts with AAP are with respect to the Delhi government. They have also decided to come together in the INDIA alliance along with Congress. The details of the alliance will be decided later including seats. I am hoping that if an alliance happens then its details should be decided as soon as possible so that we can also prepare for it,” he said.
#WATCH | Delhi: On seat sharing between AAP and Congress for Lok Sabha elections, Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit says, "Our national leadership knows our opinion...Our conflicts with AAP are with respect to the Delhi government...It will be decided later if there will be an… pic.twitter.com/CVYFAsl0gP
— ANI (@ANI) January 8, 2024
The meeting between the two parties comes just two days after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said to The Wire that seat sharing talks will be shaped by the Congress’s own internal discussions with its state leaders, Pradesh Congress Committee chiefs and Congress Legislature Party leaders.
Kharge also said on Saturday that a final decision on posts within the INDIA alliance will be taken in the next fortnight.
The INDIA alliance held its last meeting on December 19 and promised to finalise seat sharing arrangements at the earliest to put up a “collective fight” against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
But over two weeks since that meeting, no seat-sharing arrangements have been finalised yet.
The Congress has also faced criticism from the Janata Dal (United), with its national spokesperson K.C. Tyagi saying on Sunday that the INDIA alliance is “running out of time and ideas” and that the Congress needed to show urgency to keep the vibrancy of the INDIA alliance alive.
This article went live on January eighth, two thousand twenty four, at two minutes past eight in the evening.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
