Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar meets NCP's Chhagan Bhujbal, sets off tie-up speculations for 2019 polls

Mumbai: At a time the Congress is dreaming to captain an alliance of like-minded parties against the BJP for the upcoming Lok Sabha election and trying to woo Prakash Ambedkar to the proposed bloc, the Dalit leader Wednesday called upon NCP stalwart Chhagan Bhujbal in Mumbai. Ambedkar later said the meeting was both “political” as well as a “courtesy” call. [caption id=“attachment_4284393” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Prakash Ambedkar. News18[/caption] The Congress has been trying to bring Ambedkar’s e (BBM) to the opposition fold against the BJP. Interestingly, the BBM already announced its tie-up with Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM which was looked down on as communal by the Congress. When asked about what transpired at the huddle, the Dalit leader said he and Bhujbal didn’t talk about the BBM joining the proposed alliance of the like-minded parties. “It was a political meeting (with Bhujbal) in a sense that they (NCP) are strong in certain areas, while we too are strong in certain pockets,” Ambedkar told reporters after the meeting. “We discussed what could be done to see that the BJP government doesn’t come to power again. Accordingly, we exchanged information,” he said. Bhujbal could not be reached for comments. A senior NCP leader had recently said that the Sharad Pawar-led party and the Congress have reached an agreement to contest 40 of the total 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra together. They are likely to leave remaining eight seats for smaller allies.