New Delhi: Congress today (June 16, 2004) dismissed the possibility of supporting prominent industrialist Anil Ambani in the Rajya Sabha election from Uttar Pradesh and did not rule out fielding its own candidate in the poll.

"If Ambani is contesting on a Congress ticket, he has not come to us. Where is the question of support?" quipped party spokesman Satyavrata Chaturvedi when asked if the party would be backing the vice-chairman of the Reliance Group.

Ambani has filed his papers as an independent candidate supported by Samajwadi Party.

Congress, which is supporting the Mulayam Singh Yadav Government from outside, has 16 MLAs in the 403-member UP Assembly with the current strength of 391 members and requires at least another 17 MLAs to win a Rajya Sabha seat in the State.

On the possibility of an electoral tie-up in the State for the Rajya Sabha polls, he said such possibilities were there but ruled out any such alignment with Samajwadi Party.

"Any possibility for a tie-up with SP for the Rajya Sabha polls is remote," he said.