After days of back-and-forth, Mayawati today ruled out any alliance with the Congress in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two of the states where elections are due in the year-end. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief, however, has left the option open for the 2019 national election. In a sharp attack on the Congress, Mayawati said in a statement: "We will not fight the elections with the Congress in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan at any cost."