Congress refuses to buy NCP suggestion on PM

New Delhi, Mar 28 (UNI) The Congress Party today appreciated the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for its trust in Dr Manmohan Singh, but said the system in the Party was not to project any individual as Prime Ministerial candidate before the elections.

"We decide our Chief Ministers or Prime Ministers only after the elections," AICC Spokesman Shakeel Ahmed told mediapersons, reacting to the NCP's suggestion to face the next Lok Sabha election by projecting Dr Singh as the Prime Miniterial candidate of the UPA coalition.

NCP is a partner of the multi-party UPA, which came to power after the May 2004 elections.

Mr Ahmed said the Congress Party had many seasoned leaders.

"We are happy that one of our partners in the ruling coalition had praised the democratic values and the performance of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh," he said, adding that this had confirmed that the Congress' allies were happy with the work of the government and the Prime Minister.

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