Mulayam dubs SP as bigger party than Cong, rules out poll pact

Lucknow, Jun 18 (UNI) Claiming that the Samajwadi Party was a bigger party than the Congress, the party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today ruled out any chance of both the parties coming together before the Lok Sabha polls.

''SP is a bigger party than Congress, at least in Uttar Pradesh.

How can we join hands ?'' he told reporters here thereby denying any electoral pact between the two.

By saying so, the Samajwadi Party supremo sought to put at rest all the speculations rife in the political circles in this regard.

''My words on strengthening secular parties are often misconstrued which give rise to speculation of SP-Congress relationship by the media,'' Mr Yadav said. He, however, did not specify the party's stand in the post-poll scenario.

He also discounted reports of some high-level talks in New Delhi between senior leaders of both the parties trying to forge an alliance. ''These reports are baseless,'' he said.

In reply to a question, the SP leader said the tickets for Lok Sabha polls would only be decided by the central parliamentary board and no other organisational body would be authorised to do so.

UNI SB/MB PK RAI1612