Naidu confident of UNPA sorting out seat sharing problems in UP

New Delhi, Aug 23 (UNI) Asserting that all efforts would be made to keep afloat the third front or the United National Progressive Alliance, Telugu Desam Chief and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu today expressed hope that it would sort out the seat sharing problems in Uttar Pradesh with Bahujan Samaj Party.

Talking to newspersons after his meetings with Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Prakash Karat, Mr Naidu said it was the concern of all the third front parties that they should not allow the Congress to take advantage of their weaknesses. "We are confident of sorting out the problem", he said.

Mr Naidu's comments come in the wake of serious doubts raised on the existance of UNPA as an entity in the Lok Sabha elections after UP Chief Minister Mayawati announced that her BSP would contest all the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies. While the Left parties were perplexed over the developments, the Rashtriya Lok Dal of Ajit Singh which has substantial base in Western UP had started negotiations with the BJP following the UP Chief Minister's announcement.

Mr Naidu is also scheduled to meet Ms Mayawati later tonight.

He also said the UNPA will be holding a meeting again either in the end of this month or in the first week where the alliance would finalise the shape of the campaign committee.

Urging Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to convene the Monsoon Session of Parliament at the earliest, Mr Naidu said issues like price rise, latest apprisal on the Indo-US nuclear deal and discussion on cash-for-vote-scam were all the issues that needed to be held.

Turning to Andhra Pradesh, Mr Naidu expressed confidence that the TDP would be able to 'sweep' the next assembly polls whenever they were held and the incumbent government had failed totally in delivering its promises.

Answering questions about Telugu film star Chiranjeevi's plans to float his own outfit ahead of the assembly polls, Mr Naidu said he would make comments after studying his party's plans, programmes and manifesto. He said TDP's base was intact and just because some party leaders had joined the actor's bandwagon and did not mean that the party had lost its base. The workers were very much with the party, he asserted.

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