& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Indian Election

Congress starts talks to form new govt

Pallab Bhattacharya, New Delhi
With a clear electoral mandate, India's ruling Congress yesterday set in motion the process of forming the government and indicated that it may include only pre-poll allies, leaving out Samajwadi Party and RJD, which had parted ways just before the Lok Sabha polls.
The party's highest decision-making body, the Congress Working Committee, discussed the scenario after the announcement of the poll results but there was no specific mention of parties or individuals such as Samajwadi Party or RJD chief Lal u Prasad.
However, it said discussions would be held on Tuesday with "pre-poll allies", parties like DMK.Trinamool Congress and NCP, regarding how to go about forming the government.
The hour-long meeting took place immediately after the Samajwadi Party and former
prime minister HD Deve Gowda's JD(S) had offered to support the Congress-led UPA, which is 11 seats short of 272 majority in the 545-memberLok Sabha.
The general view in Congress is that Samajwadi Party should be kept out of government although it has 23 seats.
Congress spokesman Janardhan Dwivedi said there was no discussion on specific individual or party at the Working Committee meeting.
Lalu Prasad, whose RJD has four seats, has meanwhile indicated keenness to stay in the newgovernment.
Dwivedi said the Congress Parliamentary Party would meet Tuesday to elect its leader and chairperson after which talks will be held with "pre-poll allies" on formalities of governmentformation.
SEE PAGE 15 COL 7 FROM PAGE 16
He said securing majority for the government is not a big issue.
Sources said a section of Congress Working Committee members was opposed to including RJD and Samajwadi Party in the new government as the vote share of Congress is the same as that of these two parties in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Congress should keep distance from these parties to protect its interest, they said.
Asked if there was any discussion about Rahul Gandhi becoming the prime minister, Dwivedi said, "You know Manmohan Singhji is going to be the prime minister."
. Ahead of the Working Committee meeting, top leaders of Congress met separately yesterday morning at the residence of PM Manmohan Singh and discussed the issue of forming the government.
Singh is expected to be elected leader of Congress Parliamentary Party at its meeting on Tuesday, paving the way for his becoming the PM for the second successive term, first since Jawaharlal Nehru.
After that, Singh will meet President Pratibha Patil and stake claim to form the new government.
Tomorrow, he will preside over a meeting of the outgoing cabinet and complete the formality of resigning before the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting the next day.
Meanwhile, Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, whose party with 19 Lok Sabha seats from West Bengal is the second largest constituent of the UPA after Congress, said in Kolkata that she would not bargain for ministerial portfolios for her party men in the new government.
"I hate bargaining", she said.