We're united, INDIA bloc to come together again for Lok Sabha polls: Congress MP

Despite being INDIA bloc allies, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress contested the Delhi Assembly elections separately, a move that potentially cost Arvind Kejriwal his seat in Delhi. However, Congress MP Rajiv Shukla has dismissed concerns over rifts within the alliance, asserting that the opposition remains united and will come together again when the general elections approach.

Shukla clarified that the INDIA alliance was formed primarily for the Lok Sabha elections, with each party given the flexibility to make its own decisions for state-level contests.

"When the INDIA alliance was formed, it was decided that we were going to fight the Lok Sabha elections together, and in the states, the parties can take their own decisions. When parliamentary elections are held, the talks of the INDIA alliance will begin again," he said. "The unity in the



opposition is intact and will remain the same," he added.

His remarks came after the BJP’s landslide victory in the Delhi elections, where it won 48 seats, ending AAP’s decade-long rule. AAP secured just 22 seats, while Congress suffered another humiliating defeat, failing to win a single seat for the third consecutive time.

When asked whether Congress had split AAP’s votes and contributed to its defeat, Shukla dismissed the argument, stating that vote division happens in every election. "Everybody’s votes are cut during elections. So it’s unfair to say that one party cut the votes for another in the election," he said.

Congress and AAP fought the Lok Sabha elections together in Delhi. However, the parties announced that they would be going solo in Delhi for the Assembly elections, a decision that benefitted neither.