Cong, NCP are natural allies in Maharashtra

Congress and NCP must fight Maharashtra assembly elections together. Congress and Nationalist Congress Party are natural allies in Maharashtra as well as the entire country. Both are also part and parcel of the UPA government at the Centre. NCP has never shown any reservation in accepting the Congress party as its big partner. NCP has born out of Congress over the issue of foreign origin of the Congress President Sonia Gandhi, which has no relevance now. Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar , Former Lok Sabha Speaker P A Sangama and some other leaders parted ways with the Congress Party over the issue of foreign origin of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. After parting ways , Nationalist Congress was formed under the leadership of Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar. But NCP’s influence remained cofined virtually to Maharashtra and the issue over which it was formed has already fizzled out. It has nominal presence in other states of the country. But in Maharashtra it is a force to reckon with. Congress appeares to have finalized almost all the 174 seats it plans to contest in the 13th October Maharashtra polls but did not rule out exchange of few seats with NCP for the 288-member assembly. As there is already Congress-NCP coalition government under the Chief Ministership of Congress leader Ashok Chavan and the coalition is in place for the last 10 years. There is no sense for the Congress to go alone in the assembly elections next month. Because it has also to fight out anti-incumbancy factor to return to power. Any division division of secular votes may cost dearly both for the Congress and NCP. As far as the mood of the people in the coutry is concerned, the recently held by-elections for 52 assembly seats are enough to gauge. The wind is not blowing in favour of Congress and the rising prices of essential commodities have broken the back of the poor people in the country. The prices of edibles and vegetables are sky-rocketing and if they could not be checked immediately, the Congress boat may be rocked in the elections.