‘Not Necessary Alliance Has Same Opinion’: Akhilesh Yadav on Stalin’s ‘Rahul for PM’ Call

New Delhi: Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav is the latest prospective alliance partner to differ with DMK president MK Stalin’s ‘Rahul for PM’ call for the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

“The people are unhappy with the BJP. Telangana CM, Mamata ji and Sharad Pawar ji had attempted to bring together all leaders to form an alliance. If someone (Stalin) is giving his opinion, it isn't necessary that alliance has the same opinion," said Akhilesh Yadav.

At the unveiling of M Karunanidhi’s statue in Chennai, MK Stalin proposed Rahul Gandhi’s name for the post of PM and urged the parties to “strengthen Rahul’s hand" to rid the country of “communalism and to establish democracy".

“Rahul was responsible for Congress victory in the three BJP bastions. We require a strong leadership to coordinate democratic forces. That's why I have proposed Rahul’s name. I am confident our allies would understand," Stalin said.

Stalin’s proposition did not find many takers in the opposition camp which has struggled so far to forge an anti-BJP bloc before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, which has been on good terms with other opposition parties but has not shown the same warmth for the Congress, said any decision on a prime ministerial candidate should be taken at a meeting of opposition parties after the general election results.

Sharad Pawar’s NCP, too, said there was no need for an immediate debate on the PM candidate. "The Congress itself has declared that it will be decided after the election results," NCP national spokesperson Nawab Malik said.

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram had earlier maintained that the party never "officially" said its president Rahul Gandhi should be the prime minister if an opposition alliance formed the next government. The decision on who would be the prime minister in the event of an opposition alliance winning next year's Lok Sabha poll will be taken by its constituents, he had said.

The leaders of 21 Opposition parties, barring the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party, had met in New Delhi last week and vowed to forge a united front to fight and defeat the BJP in the 2019 general election.

The BJP is clear that they will go into the 2019 election with PM Modi as their leader and prime ministerial candidate. The party has constantly mocked and challenged the Congress to name its prime ministerial candidate.