The Congress is likely to fight the forthcoming Himachal Pradesh assembly elections on its own, with party sources on Wednesday ruling out any move to form an alliance with the Himachal Vikas Congress.

The HVC is led by former Union minister Sukh Ram, who became a pariah after being mired in corruption cases.

The Himachal Pradesh unit of the party is sharply divided over the issue of an alliance with the HVC with senior leader Vidya Stokes supporting an alliance while former chief minister Vir Bhadra Singh is firmly opposed to any such move.

The All India Congress Committee's screening panel, headed by former Union finance minister Manmohan Singh, met on Wednesday to scrutinise the nominees for the 68 seats in the state, including those sought by the HVC.

A meeting of the party's central election committee, headed by party president Sonia Gandhi, is scheduled for Thursday to finalise the names.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has already ruled out an alliance with the HVC.