Should allow no division of votes between like-minded parties: Nawab Malik

Maharashtra minister and NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik on Monday said that the NCP is of the opinion that there should be no division of votes between like-minded parties in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh polls.

This is much needed to take on the BJP in the state, he remarked.

"We should support the party which is contesting the election with all its might in Uttar Pradesh. It is our view that there should be no division of votes (among non-BJP parties) in Uttar Pradesh," said Malik.

The NCP is also discussing the same with Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party. The Samajwadi Party, which is the key opposition party in Uttar Pradesh, shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in Maharashtra.

In Goa, senior NCP leader Praful Patel held discussions with Congress in-charge for Goa Dinesh Gundu Rao over the unity of like-minded parties as they face polls there, but there has been no response yet. The assembly elections in both Goa and UP are due early next year.

"Definitely, we are for the unity of all (non-BJP) parties. It can happen if the Congress takes an initiative. The Congress is a big party there. It is the responsibility of the Congress to take all together...Our position will be decided once the Congress takes its decision," Malik said.

Though the Congress emerged as the single largest party in the 2017 assembly polls by winning 17 seats in the 40-member House, they failed to form the government. Instead, the BJP, which had won just 13 seats, allied with regional outfits and independents and formed the government.