NEW DELHI, April 18 � In a hush-hush tour, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) president Chandra Mohan Patowary arrived in the national capital to meet top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ostensibly to work out a post-poll arrangement.�
According to sources, Patowary is likely to meet former BJP president Rajnath Singh, Opposition leader in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, who is in charge of Assam, Lok Sabha Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj and Sudangshu Mittal, among others.
The AGP president, however, could not be contacted, as all calls by this newspaper went unanswered.�The AGP leader�s meeting with BJP assumes significance because Jaitley last week told newsmen that BJP was in talks with AGP to explore the possibilities of forming the next government.
He claimed BJP foresaw the possibility of a non-Congress government coming to power in Assam Assembly elections. �There is a strong anti-Congress mood in Assam. The party is in for a shock,� the senior BJP leader said, adding, the Congress will not be able to form the next government.
�BJP and AGP will gain in the State and this will be at the cost of the Congress,� Jaitley claimed.�Jaitley said BJP had opened channels of communication with AGP and got positive signals from it. �We are open to an alliance with AGP and their attitude too has been positive,� he said. Sources said BJP and AGP are open to forming a government if they get the numbers.
