Parties talk, plot to get partners and power

New Delhi: The Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Left Front, the three big political camps, are talking and plotting with regional parties a day after general elections ended and exit polls predicted a hung Parliament.

The Congress on Thursday contacted the Samajwadi Party and indicated that it may dump its alliance partner DMK to get the support of AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa.

"Only the BJP and the Shiv Sena are communal. We won't have anything to do with these parties who spread hate and communalism," said Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh in New Delhi. "The AIADMK is not a communal party," he said.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhv told a press conference his party was willing to team up with "like-minded, progressive and secular parties".

"The Congress will emerge as the single largest party. We are confident we will form the government. Manmohan Singh is our only prime ministerial candidate. The rest is all speculation," he said. "We have full faith in our allies."

Digvijay Singh spoke to Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh, with whom he had a running feud during the elections.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday called up Lalu Prasad, Ram Vilas Paswan and Sharad Pawar, who are allies in the United Progressive Alliance government but seemed to be drifting away.

The Congress is eyeing Janata Dal-Secular leader Deve Gowda, Praja Rajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and UP Chief Minister Mayawati.

BJP IN THE RACE

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) too is eyeing Jayalalithaa, Mayawati, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banarjee and Telegu Desam Party leader Chandrababu Naidu for a post-poll arrangement.

Banerjee fought elections in West Bengal in alliance with the Congress and Naidu is part of the Third Front but senior BJP leaders are wooing them for support.

The core committee of the BJP met at part leader L K Advani's residence in New Delhi twice in the day on Thursday. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who has been tasked with winning over Jayalalithaa, indicated that the party was looking for new allies.

"I am here to take part in the post-poll political process. What is there to hide," said Modi.

Senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj was confident that the party would emerge as the “single largest party” and would prove exit polls wrong. “We are happy that we are being shown on the second place in the exit polls, because the last time it was the one on the second place who formed the government. It’s a matter of only two days. The BJP will definitely be the single largest party,” said Swaraj.

OPTIONS LEFT

The Left parties on Thursday said they would not let the BJP form a government, but the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) also pointed out that a decision on supporting a Congress-led dispensation or formation of a Third Front government would be taken only after the Monday meeting with their Third Front allies.

"We will not support a Congress-led government. We will not let the BJP exploit the post-poll numbers to form a government," said Communist Party of India-Marxist General Secretary Prakash Karat.

Communist Party of India National Secretary D Raja also echoed Karat's views saying Left will try to install a non-Congress, non-BJP government.

"We don't want BJP to take advantage on any situation that emerges (after May 16). We will strive for an alternate government... a non-Congress, non-BJP government," said Raja.

However, sources have told CNN-IBN that the Left could allow a Congress-led minority government to take and stay in power if the United Progress Alliance emerges as the largest alliance, but falls short of a majority.

But its first priority will be to help form a Third Front government which it could join.