Bengaluru: Janata Dal (Secular) supremo H D Deve Gowda on Tuesday ruled out having pre-poll alliance with the ruling party Congress, citing time constraint.

Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Gowda said that earlier in the day, members of the Samvidhana Rakshanegagi Karnataka had met him and urged him to forge an alliance with the Congress to ensure the "communal" BJP's defeat in the elections. "But where is the time to do this? They have said that the BJP should be defeated in the elections," he said.

Gowda also said that his conversation with the members of the organisation had been misinterpreted by the media.

After the members of the organisation sought the secular forces to unite, Gowda is learnt to have told them to ask the Congress to release its list on seat sharing with the JD(S).

Gowda, however, made it clear that he was not entertaining any such thoughts. "I was saddened by these speculations. The JD(S) has formed an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The party is also exploring a pre-poll alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP). There is no time to explore alliances with any other parties," he added.

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Kolkata (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the Brigade Parade Grounds here on Saturday to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the BJP's first government in West Bengal.

Accompanied by state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya and CM-elect Suvendu Adhikari, Modi was accorded a rousing welcome.

Amid the 'Jay Shri Ram' slogan, Modi entered the venue on an open vehicle and was seen waving at the crowd.

The Prime Minister landed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport here a little before 10 am and took a helicopter to reach the Race Course ground before proceeding by road to the venue.

Thousands of BJP supporters gathered at the Brigade Parade Grounds since early morning to witness the oath-taking ceremony.

The BJP secured 207 seats in the 294-member Assembly, ending the Trinamool Congress' 15-year rule in the state.