Tuesday, November 22 2005 15:52 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Seeking to put up a brave face in the wake of debacle in Bihar, Congress today said it will not ditch Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, its 'dependable' ally who stood by it through 'thick and thin.'

"We do not ditch dependable allies. Winning and losing is a part of politics," Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh said here.

However, he said, things would have been different in Bihar had the RJD-led alliance got support from Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ramvilas Paswan and Communist Party of India (CPI) seen beyond Lalu Prasad.

"The anti-Lalu vote that was divided in February got consolidated in favour of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Had Pawan and CPI supported us, things would have been different," said Singh, who is in charge of Congress affairs in Bihar.

He said the RJD-Congress stand on issues in Bihar was consistent, "But 15 years of anti-incumbency was not easy to tackle."

He indicated that the Congress did not commit any mistake in supporting the RJD in Bihar.

"How can we go to the people saying we want Lalu's support at the Center but we do not want him in the state," he asked.