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In a significant shift from its earlier stand, senior Congress leader Arjun Singh said that the party is not averse to heading a coalition at the Centre though its primary aim would be to capture power on its own.
"We decided at Pachmarhi that a coalition would not be our first aim. The party should strengthen itself and achieve a position of eminence," he said.
In case, the Congress is not able to form a government on its own, it will initiate moves to provide an alternative in the form of a coalition, Singh said in an interview to PTI ahead of the crucial AICC session to be held in Delhi later in May.
To a query as to who were its natural allies, Singh said, "Secular parties are our natural allies."
About the Third Front, comprising Left parties and the Samajwadi Party, he said "I think it (front) is not as rigid (about aligning with a Sonia Gandhi-led Congress) as it was."
Singh, however, indicated the party still has reservations about tying up with the DMK in Tamil Nadu.
Asked whether the issue of Rajiv Gandhi assassination was coming in the way, he said, "It is one of the problems."
To a question about the AIADMK's reported attempts to woo the BJP, he said this kind of flip-flops would never pay.
When political alignments are made without any thought for ideology and which are tenuous, then the ties binding the coalition are bound to get 'looser' as the allies would feel that their long-range political interests were not being served by the alliance, he said.
Attacking the BJP for pursuing its Hindutva agenda, he said, "Ultimately, everyone has to decide whether to support the RSS or not."
However, "we are not making any conscious effort to destabilise the central government. Once it completes its term, we will comment on its achievements and failures," Singh, who is a Congress Working Committee member, said.
On the importance of the coming AICC session, he said it was being held at a time when the focus of the nation's politics was gradually turning towards the revival of Congress and its role in the current political situation.
He said Congress has been able to help shape public opinion and much of the credit went to party president Sonia Gandhi and to the fact that basic ideology of the party - secularism and the interest of women, youth and weaker sections.
"People are looking at the Congress party with new political interest. When Sonia Gandhi assumed the reins of the organisation, it was ruling in three states and now we are in power in 14. From this you can make out which way the political wind is blowing," he said.
Asked about attempts to target Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin because of the rising graph of Congress, he said, "Any personal or negative approach against a person does not find favour with the people."
He said that Sonia's foreign origin was no longer an issue with the people, but some political leaders were not willing to let go of it.
PTI
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