United Front unveils election pact

The United Front governing coalition in India says it'll present a common manifesto in the general elections starting next month.

But a spokesman for the multi-party coalition, S Jaipal Reddy, said there were still differences between two of its partners the Janata Dal and the Samajwadi Party over the distribution of constituencies.

Mr Reddy was attending a rally in the southern city of Hyderabad to launch the United Front election campaign.

He said the joint manifesto would be released at the end of the month.

The BBC Delhi correspondent says that the prospects for the United Front in this campaign are gloomy.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service