Congress, NCP enter alliance for civic by-poll in Nagpur

Nagpur, Sep 4 (UNI) Coming together for the first time for a civic poll in the city, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have entered into an alliance for next month's by-election from 10 wards of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC).

The Congress is contesting 6 seats and the NCP 4 in the by-poll, slated to be held on October 7 next, Congress city unit president Jaiprakash Gupta told UNI.

''The decision to fight together, and the seat-sharing formula, was worked out after a meeting between leaders of the two parties,'' Mr Gupta said.

The NCP will contest from the wards where it had the second highest tally in the last election, and the Congress from the remaining, he said.

Although the two parties are partners in power in the state government, they fought separately in the civic polls in Nagpur held in 2002 and in February 2007.

The October 7 by-election is being held due to the disqualification of 9 councillors after their caste certificates were found invalid, and the death of another. The disqualified members included five from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including sitting Mayor Devrao Umredkar, three from the Shiv Sena and one from the Congress. The deceased councillor was from the Congress.

The strength of the 136-member NMC general body has, thus, been reduced to 126. The present party-wise strength is: BJP 50, Shiv Sena 5, Congress 31, NCP 8, BSP 5, RJD 3, MNS 2, Independents 11 and others 11. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance had captured power in the civic body at the elections in February last.

UNI