There is no going back on the decision of the coordination committee to have a pre-poll alliance with the Janata Dal (Secular), even if it is not advantageous to the Congress in some places, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said here on Tuesday.
He was reacting to reports of some Congress leaders objecting to the pre-poll alliance plans. The Minister was in Belagavi to inspect the department’s works.
“The Congress Working Committee, the apex decision-making body of the party, has decided to go for pre-poll alliances with various parties across the country. In such a situation, Karnataka cannot say it will stay out of such an arrangement,” he said.
“In a coalition government and in alliance politics, one partner cannot get all it wants. We have to compromise. The alliance will stay even if the Congress was to suffer some losses in some places,” Mr. Gowda said. “The current political situation demands a pre-poll alliance and we will stand by it,” he said.
The coordination committee that has senior leaders of both the parties has come to the conclusion that the Congress will have a pre-poll alliance with the JD(S) in the Lok Sabha polls. “There will not be any change in this,” he said.
Asked about former Minister A. Manju’s statement that the Congress will not let go of Hassan and Mandya seats in the parliament polls, Mr. Gowda said it was his personal opinion. “If some leaders have differences with the structure of the alliance, senior leaders will speak to them and convince them on its importance. As of now, there is an agreement on the need for an alliance. The details such as seat sharing have not been discussed,” he said.
“There was a lot of media speculation on the survival of the coalition government. But it has survived and is delivering. It will stay intact and complete its term,” the Minister said.
On the allegation of North Karnataka being neglected, he said: “Apart from schemes for comprehensive development, we have targeted programmes for the development of backward regions like North Karnataka. We have to work towards strengthening such programmes and schemes. We should not weaken such efforts by fanning emotions that speak of a separate State,” he said.
