India's Congress Party set to choose allies, form government

congressNew Delhi - India's Congress Party celebrated its decisive victory in general elections while begging the task of choosing allies and forming a new government on Sunday.

After the month-long general election, the Congress Party-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) won 262 seats, of which the Congress took 205. The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance trailed with 159 seats.

A third front of eight parties including leftists won 80 seats, while a fourth combine of two regional parties of northern India won 26. Fourteen seats were won by five smaller parties and independents.

Results of two seats were yet to be declared as there were some technical hitches with a few electronic voting machines, according to India's Election Commission.

After a general election the leader of the biggest party or alliance in the Lok Sabha, India's lower house of Parliament, is by convention called on by the president to form the next government, but must prove majority in Parliament.

The Congress Party-led alliance needs to muster the support of at least 10 more lawmakers to reach a simple majority of 272 in the 545-member Lok Sabha.

Senior Congress party leaders met in the national capital Sunday for discussions on choices of allies.

"We are very close to the magic figure of 272," Congress Party leader Rajiv Shukla was quoted as saying by NDTV news channel. "So we won't require large parties."

Party president Sonia Gandhi called a meeting of the Congress Working Committee later Sunday to thank voters and to chart out a course of action.

That would be followed by a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party, which would formally elect Manmohan Singh as its leader, paving the way for President Pratibha Patil to call on him to form the next government, party sources said.

With less allies pulling strings, Singh in his second term as prime minister would find it relatively easier to allocate ministry portfolios, analysts said.

Several young and new faces were expected to make it into the cabinet, and Singh said earlier that he would once again try to persuade an as-yet reluctant Rahul Gandhi, party general secretary and Sonia Gandhi's son, to join.

Rahul Gandhi, widely seen among Congress Party leaders and workers as making a major contribution in the party's campaign, has been often projected as a possible future prime minister.

Singh, however, is firm in his seat for now but faces tough months ahead. India is grappling with an economic downturn and job losses after three consecutive years of 9 per cent growth in GDP. The forecast for the current financial year has been downgraded to 7 per cent.

He would be expected to present an annual budget within a month of taking office and would have to manage a huge budget deficit with increased spending to boost the economy and run various development and welfare programmes which have paid rich electoral dividend.

Relations with volatile neighbour Pakistan, the cause of Sri Lankan Tamils and easing strains in old, established relations with Nepal would also be on the agenda, as well as tightening internal security against the threat of terrorist attacks.

As far as policies are concerned, Singh is unlikely to face any major opposition like that of the leftist parties on the civilian nuclear deal with the United States, as the main opposition groups seem in disarray.

BJP leaders said Lal Krishna Advani, their prime ministerial candidate, wanted to step down as leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha after the electoral debacle.

"He seems to have made up his mind. Leaders are calling him requesting him to continue, but he does not seem agreeable," BJP spokesman Balbir Punj said.

Analysts said the BJP's Hindu nationalist ideology and the lack of a statesman like former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who could attract allies despite the party's right-wing aura, may have affected the BJP's poll performance.

Vajpayee retired from active politics after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance lost the 2004 general elections.

The leftist parties which saw their seats halved in the elections are also scheduled to meet in the capital Monday to discuss their poor performance and future strategy.(dpa)