Some Cong leaders oppose possible tie-up with RLP in Rajasthan

With the Congress considering a tie-up with Hanuman Beniwal's RLP in Rajasthan for the Lok Sabha polls, a section of leaders in the grand old party has voiced opposition to the alliance, sources said on Tuesday.

Senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan minister Harish Chaudhary expressed his opposition to the tie-up during a meeting of the party's screening committee, which was attended by senior state leaders, here on Tuesday, the sources said.

Some other senior leaders in the state are also opposed to the possible alliance with Beniwal's Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) and have cited his past opposition to the Congress and his remarks against the party's top leadership, they said.

If the alliance happens, the Nagaur Lok Sabha seat is most likely to go to Beniwal.

Those in favour of the alliance in the Congress believe the party would benefit from the Jat following that Beniwal enjoys.

A final decision on the alliance by the party leadership would be taken in a day or two, the sources said.

The Congress is also likely to join hands with the Left in the desert state.

While the Left and the Congress are part of the INDIA bloc, Beniwal's party is not and has been an NDA ally in the past.

There are 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in Rajasthan and the Congress had drawn a blank in the state in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Top Congress leadership is likely to deliberate and finalise the candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections when the party's central election committee meets here on March 7.