‘Sabotage by influential leader': How AAP-Congress alliance talks came undone in Haryana

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was keen on an alliance with the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party in Haryana. (File Photo: PTI)

The Aam Aadmi Party on Monday released its first list of 20 candidates for the Haryana Assembly elections, virtually drawing to a close the ongoing talks with the Congress for a pre-poll alliance in the state.

While both parties had expressed willingness for a tie-up in Haryana, days of hard bargaining drew to a nought, allegedly due to "sabotage" by an "influential leader" in the Congress, The Indian Express reported citing AAP sources.

Notably, a faction led by former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was against any alliance with the AAP in the Haryana, asserting that the Congress was in a strong position in the state and would gain nothing out of an alliance in the state. Initiated by Rahul Gandhi, the Congress was hopeful of an alliance with with INDIA bloc partners in order to send out the message of a united front.

Also Read: Haryana Assembly Elections 2024

The Congress maintained a strategic silence as AAP released its first list while All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in charge of Haryana, Deepak Babaria, who was holding talks with the AAP till Sunday, was admitted to a hospital after complaining about feeling unwell.

Why did the alliance talks fail?

While the talks began with the AAP demanding 10-15 seats in the state, the party eventually climbed down to settle for 5-7 seats of its choice. More than the number of seats, the AAP was insistent on contesting Assembly seats in the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency, but the Congress remained adamant on not parting with seats like Kalayat, Pehowa, Kalayat, Jind, Guhla, and Sohna that the AAP sought.

According to The Indian Express, AAP sources claimed the Congress was offering it "weak seats" despite AAP negotiator Raghav Chadha offering different pools of seats to draw a consensus.

Pehowa, Kalayat, and Guhla are part of the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency that the AAP contested in the Lok Sabha elections in alliance with the Congress. The AAP led in all three Assembly segments.

The IE report cites an unnamed AAP leader as alleging that a “senior Congress leader” sabotaged the talks by repeatedly flagging as non-negotiable the seats that the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP wanted.

“Hence, we could not find a mix of seats agreeable to both the Congress and the AAP,” he said.

'Delhi leaders behind Congress dragging its feet'

The report further quotes an AAP source as saying that "Delhi-based Congress leaders" were behind the Congress dragging its feet on the alliance and stalling the talks for a tie-up. The AAP's list released on Monday eventually had the names of 12 seats where the Congress had already fielded candidates, signalling that the talks were all but over.

“We clearly want to come together with the Congress to isolate and defeat the BJP but what can we do if the Congress does not want to do so?” the AAP functionary asked.

“Haryana, given its geographical location between Delhi and Punjab, where the AAP is in power, and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s home state, is naturally one where the party wants to ensure its influence; our choice of seats is based on this aim,” he added.