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Journalism of Courage
Dashing any hopes of a ‘‘secular alliance’’ for the time being, Mulayam Singh Yadav, speaking at the end of a three-day Samajwadi Party meeting here, declared that the party was not considering any coalition in the near future but was open to the idea of seat adjustments in the forthcoming Assembly polls in four states.
While party spokesperson Amar Singh, at a press conference, had suggested a softening of the SP’s stance towards the Congress, Mulayam today even avoided mentioning the party by name.
Responding to specific queries on the Congress announcement in Shimla that it would work for an alliance with like-minded parties, Mulayam stated that his party was not going to be part of any coalition. As for the question of who would lead any post-poll alliance, he said that this was a question best answered when the situation arose.
While Mulayam did not elaborate on the reasons behind the decision announced today, he said that Amar Singh had already answered these questions in detail yesterday. Amar Singh, elaborating on the issue, had stated that the Congress in UP was acting in a fashion which seemed to contradict its statement on alliances with like-minded parties.
The decision of the Congress to field a candidate in the recent Chiragaon by-election in UP, which Amar Singh said was the main factor in the SP defeat, seemed to have contributed in some measure to the decision.
