Nagpur: The Congress, BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP have become "family" parties and aim to keep power among themselves, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi leader Prakash Ambedkar said on Friday.
Speaking to reporters here, Ambedkar also gave reasons on why his party was not keen to have a tie-up with the Congress or the Nationalist Congress Party for the forthcoming Maharashtra Assembly polls.
"Congress has become a family party and they want to keep power within the family. The Congress leaders who have gone to the BJP and Shiv Sena have made these two into family parties as well. These families have spread their net across the four parties," he said.
Ambedkar said the VBA was planning to contest all 288 Assembly seats. Speaking on the Congress-NCP alliance, he said some Congress leaders, during a party meeting, had said it was not getting NCP votes.
On a possible tie-up of the VBA with the Congress-NCP, Ambedkar said, "When the tie-up with the NCP is not beneficial to the Congress, then how can an alliance with the NCP be beneficial for us. We have already taken a stand to not have adjustments with the NCP"
As far as the Congress was concerned, he said the VBA had tried for an alliance with the former for the April-May Lok Sabha polls but it did not materialise.
"Besides, the Congress now does not have political morality. They accused us of being the B team of the BJP. And now they (Congress leaders) are, through media and television, claiming they want an alliance with us. First, you (Congress) clarify what is the status of the VBA," he said.
"If you (Congress) think we are the B team of the BJP, then we will make you talk directly with (Maharashtra chief minister) Devendra Fadnavis for an alliance. Why make VBA the medium," he retorted.
He said workers and leaders of the VBA would not want to compromise and go in for a tie-up with the Congress till the latter clarified its stand on the VBA.
