Outside UP, BSP is no threat: Congress

By OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

New Delhi

June 5: The Congress does not see the BSP as a potential threat to it outside Uttar Pradesh after the outcome of the Karnataka, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh polls. In fact, AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday said that the BSP chief has been irrelevant outside Uttar Pradesh.

Mr Singh, who is also in-charge of the party affairs in Uttar Pradesh, drew attention to how Ms Mayawati’s party had failed to make a dent in Karnataka, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. "The BSP’s share of votes in Karnataka increased because it fought all the seats," he said.

Replying to questions, Mr Singh said that the Congress was preparing to contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh on its own next year.

Asked if it meant that the party would not have a prepoll alliance with like-minded parties, especially the Samajwadi Party, the AICC general secretary reiterated how the party is preparing to fight all seats. But he also made it clear that in politics anything can happen.

When reporters pointed out the strength of the BSP in Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and other states, the former chief minister conceded that the BSP had influence in certain pockets in Madhya Pradesh.