Cong-JD(S) logjam continues over LS poll seat-sharing

Bengaluru, Jan 25: The Congress and the JD(S) appear to be struggling to seal a seat-sharing deal for the forthcoming general election after a brief discussion on the issue during the coordination committee meeting yesterday failed to yield meaningful results.

The coordination panel, which comprises key leaders from the two parties, decided to hold another meeting involving JD(S) supremo HD Deve Gowda sometime next week. While the Congress is pitching for 24 of the total 28 seats, the JD(S) is insisting on 8-10 seats, sources say.

"We only had a preliminary meeting on seat sharing," said Siddaramaiah, head of the coordination panel. "The meetings will continue till we arrive at a decision. We will hold a separate discussion on this sometime next week."

JD(S) secretary-general K Danish Ali said the priority is to win at least 25 seats. "Therefore, we have told our alliance partner to devise a formula based on winnability rather than any set format," Ali said. He said it could take another three-four meetings to reach an agreement.

A senior leader who attended Thursday’s meeting said the JD(S) tabled a proposal "for a minimum eight Lok Sabha seats of their choice".

"Apart from Mandya and Hassan, which it won, the JD(S) wants the Congress to give it five seats — Mysuru, Tumakuru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura and Bengaluru Rural or Bengaluru North seats besides Raichur or Vijayapura," said the leader. "The party feels it has a stronger base than Congress in these seats."

The Congress is believed to have told JD(S) leaders that it cannot deny tickets to nine of their sitting MPs. However, a final decision will be taken by the high command.

"If state leaders fail to reach a consensus, the matter will be decided by Gowda and AICC president Rahul Gandhi," the senior leader said. "We have been asked to hold state-level meetings and submit reports to central leaders. Based on the reports, Rahul and Gowda will take a final decision."

Sources say AICC general secretary KC Venugopal, at a party meeting earlier on Thursday, said not all sitting MPs are sure to get tickets.

It was decided at the meeting to implement the common minimum programme (CMP) in the forthcoming state budget, tentatively slated for February 8.