Third Front has ‘withered’ away even before counting: BJP

Third Front has ‘withered’ away even before counting: BJPNew Delhi, May 14: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday claimed that the Third Front has withered away even before the counting of votes in the Lok Sabha elections.

"We pity the Third Front as it is becoming extinct even before counting has begun. Left has allowed the withering away of the Third Front," BJP Spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters here.

Prasad also accused the Left parties of enabling the Third Front.

"CPM has shown its true colours. Prakash Karat, the senior most leader of CPM, who was making claims of forming a Third Front -- said that his party would support the Congress if the BJP is in a position to form the government. This is the height of disillusionment," Prasad said.

Prasad further said the Left parties were opportunistic.

"The Left enjoyed four-and-a-half years of power, then indulged in six months of drama of opposing the government and now wishes to come back to power," Prasad added.

Prasad claimed that his party was confident of emerging as the single largest party and claimed the National Democratic Alliance
(NDA) would end up as the largest pre-poll alliance.

"We have also done our internal survey which shows the BJP emerging as the single largest party and the NDA as the most credible pre-poll alliance," Prasad added.

The BJP leader said the internal survey showed BJP winning 166 seats and the NDA emerging victorious in 218 constituencies.

Prasad said the survey conducted by the BJP showed Congress gaining only in Kerala, Punjab and Rajasthan and faring badly in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

On the contrary, the BJP is expected to gain in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Orissa and Karnataka, he said. (ANI)