New Delhi:
Hours after the united opposition's hopes of an grand alliance between the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) were dashed on Tuesday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the grand old party has some secret understanding with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The AAP president also expressed confidence over his party's victory in General Elections 2019, saying that the national capital is ready to fight against the "unholy" alliance between the BJP and the Congress.
Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal wrote, "At a time when the whole country wants to defeat Modi- Shah duo, Cong is helping BJP by splitting anti-BJP vote. Rumours r that Cong has some secret understanding wid BJP. Delhi is ready to fight against Cong-BJP alliance. People will defeat this unholy alliance".
Kejriwal's statement came after former chief minister and Delhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit, early in the day, has "unanimously" turned down the idea of an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which swept to power in Delhi in 2015. "A unanimous decision has been taken that there will be no alliance in Delhi," Dikshit said. The announcement by Dikshit came following a meeting with Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
Earlier, speculations had been rife that the Arvind Kejriwal-led party and the Congress have reached an agreement to forge an alliance in Delhi. However, senior AAP leader Gopal Rai later said that none of the parties have reached any agreement on the same.
Early in the month, Arvind Kejriwal's AAP had declared candidates for six of Delhi's seven Lok Sabha seats, saying there was no possibility of an alliance with the Congress. But the party was open to negotiations and had several seat sharing formulas ready.
The AAP has fielded Atishi Marlena from East Delhi, Raghav Chaddha from South Delhi, Dilip Pandey from North East Delhi, Gugan Singh from North West Delhi, Brajesh Goel from New Delhi and Pankaj Gupta from Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha seat. The candidate for the seventh Lok Sabha seat - West Delhi - will be declared later as the party is yet to come with the most eligibale candidate for the constituency.
