The Hindu : Mayawati recommends dissolution of U.P. House

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 26, 2003

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Mayawati recommends dissolution of U.P. House

By J.P. Shukla

LUCKNOW AUG. 25. The 15-month-old Bharatiya Janata Party-Bahujan Samaj Party coalition in Uttar Pradesh today came to an end with the BJP withdrawing its support to the Government headed by the Chief Minister, Mayawati, and the latter recommending to the Governor, Vishnu Kant Shastri, the dissolution of the Assembly to seek a fresh mandate from the people.

The Governor later told newspersons that he was examining the two letters — one from the leader of the BJP legislature group, Lalji Tandon, informing that his party had withdrawn support to Ms. Mayawati and the other from the Chief Minister recommending the dissolution of the Assembly. Mr. Shastri, however, stressed that he had received the letter from Mr. Tandon much ahead of that of the Chief Minister giving a hint that there was little chance of his accepting the recommendation of Ms. Mayawati to dissolve the House.

Meticulous plan

In what looked like the execution of a meticulously prepared plan, Ms. Mayawati had called a meeting of the Cabinet at 10 a.m., an hour before an All-India Convention of BSP workers was to begin at the Ambedkar Maidan here.

After some routine matters were dispensed with at the Cabinet meeting the Chief Minister announced that she had decided to resign and recommend the dissolution of the Assembly, throwing the BJP Ministers into a state of shock.

The issue was hurriedly discussed with the national BJP leaders in New Delhi when a decision was taken to write to the Governor to withdraw the party support to Ms. Mayawati. Accordingly, Mr. Tandon drove to the Raj Bhavan to hand over the letter. Ms. Mayawati reached half an hour later with her letter.

`Political instability'

In her letter, Ms. Mayawati claimed that she had a clear majority in the Assembly but the Opposition was trying to create an atmosphere of political uncertainty in the State making financial allurements to the MLAs.

She said nearly three dozen MLAs of the Samajwadi Party were ready to quit for the sake of ministerial posts and monetary considerations. Nearly three dozen MLAs of the BJP had established contact with the Opposition and were ready to cross to its side. Added to these were 14 MLAs of the Rashtriya Lok Dal who were bargaining with both the sides.

She pleaded that it was necessary to dissolve the Assembly to end this state of political instability in the State.

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