M A I N   N E W S

No truck with Mulayam, Maya, says BJP

New Delhi, January 18
Amidst growing indications of early Lok Sabha elections, the BJP today kept open the option for a tie-up with the AIADMK, a day after Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa hinted at her party’s willingness for the same, but ruled out alliances with the Samajwadi Party or the BSP.

Asked about the possibility of an alliance between his party and the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, BJP President M. Venkaiah Naidu told reporters in Bangalore that there had been no discussion so far on the issue. “I am neither proposing nor opposing (the alliance).”

He said the BJP would firm up alliances once the notification for the poll was issued. “Till such time, everything is open,” he added in reply to another question on the issue.

However, both Mr Naidu and General Secretary Pramod Mahajan made it clear that there was no possibility of their party’s alliance with the SP or the BSP.

“I do not see any possibility of the BJP and the SP coming together. We will contest on our own in Uttar Pradesh,” Mr Naidu said.

In Nagpur, the BJP rejected any possibility of electoral alliances with the SP or the BSP.

“There is no possibility of an electoral alliance either with Mr Mulayam Singh or Ms Mayawati,” Mr Mahajan told a press conference here.

On alliance with Mr Om Prakash Chautala’s INLD, Mr Mahajan said “even if he does not align with us, he is not going to have an alliance with the Congress in Haryana.”

Meanwhile, indicating that the BJP would not be averse to doing business with parties like the SP and the BSP in the post-poll scenario, HRD Minister Murli Manohar Joshi today asked the opposition to name its prime ministrial choice before the Lok Sabha elections.

He said Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin would be an issue in the elections. — PTI

Sangma meets Vajpayee
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 18
Amid a clash with his party chief Sharad Pawar over aligning with the Congress, NCP leader P.A. Sangma tonight met with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and discussed the possibilities of a tie-up between the North East People’s Forum and the NDA in the coming Lok Sabha poll.

After a 30-minute meeting at the Prime Minister’s official residence, Mr Sangma told reporters that he briefly discussed with Mr Vajpayee the issue of electoral adjustments between the newly-floated forum and the NDA in case they decided to go together.

Mr Sangma’s interaction with Mr Vajpayee came a day ahead of the meeting of the North East People’s Forum (NEPF) here to take a decision on joining hands with the NDA in the coming Lok Sabha poll. The meeting is likely to be attended by four non-Congress Chief Ministers from the North-East.

Asked about NCP Chief Sharad Pawar’s statement about persuading him to change his mind, Mr Sangma said Mr Pawar had his own compulsions in Maharashtra. “I fully appreciate that. Similarly, I have my own in North-East and he should appreciate that,” he said.