PM, Sonia want PDP-Congress alliance in J&K beyond 2008 polls

Srinagar, Sep 4 (UNI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi are both keen to ensure their party's alliance with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Jammu and Kashmir beyond the next Assembly elections in 2008.

Highly placed sources told UNI that the Prime Minister hosted a dinner for PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in New Delhi on Sunday.

Ms Gandhi, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson, also attended the dinner-meeting which lasted several hours.

Dr Singh and Ms Gandhi both favoured the continuation of the Congress-PDP alliance for the coming Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and even beyond the polls to keep the main opposition National Conference (NC) at bay, they said.

Both the leaders were of the opinion that the Congress-PDP alliance would provide a stable government in the state, they added.

This was important for restoration of peace and normalcy in the strife-torn state and also keeping in mind the aspirations of the people who wanted a stable regime in place.

The sources said both the Prime Minister and the Congress chief stressed upon Mr Sayeed and Mr Azad to ensure that the present political arrangement in the state remained intact.

They said both the PDP and the Congress leadership were suddenly feeling the pressure and heat following the decision of NC patron Farooq Abdullah to enter the election fray.

The NC had already announced that Dr Abdullah would be the party's Chief Ministerial candidate in the next Assembly elections.

The sources said Dr Singh and Ms Gandhi urged both Mr Sayeed and Mr Azad to work for strengthening the ruling coalition in the state and make sincere efforts in resolving their differences.

At the meeting, Mr Sayeed complained that the Chief Minister does not take the PDP leadership into account while taking some important decisions.

However, Mr Azad said all major decisions were being taken at the Cabinet meetings which were regularly attended by the PDP Ministers.

The sources said the Prime Minister and the UPA chairperson called for greater coordination between the two alliance partners to dispel the notion that they were engaged in bitter fights over some issues.

They said Dr Singh and Ms Gandhi cautioned that the NC, BJP and other political parties might take advantage of the situation arising due to the differences between the PDP and the Congress.

The sources said the outcome of the meeting clearly suggested that the Prime Minister and the UPA chairperson were very keen to ensure survival of the PDP-Congress coalition in Jammu and Kashmir beyond the 2008 Assembly elections and both Mr Sayeed and Mr Azad them that they would work hard in this regard in the larger interest of the state.

UNI