Cong. keeping Bihar Govt. alive: NDA

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, APRIL 5. Amid indications that the Congress(I) will not do anything at this juncture to ``destabilise'' the Rashtriya Janata Dal-led Government, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) appeared to be running out of patience.

This was evident in the attack by the Samata Party and the Janata Dal (United) directed against the Congress(I) for continuing its support to the ``tainted'' Rabri Devi Ministry. The Samata Party president, Ms. Jaya Jaitley, and the Communications Minister, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, in separate statements blamed the Congress(I) for keeping alive the RJD Ministry and wanted to know how long the party would continue its support despite the chargesheets.

The CPI(M) was the only party which came out openly in support of the Rabri Devi Government and asserted that there was no justification for its resignation. In a formal statement, the politburo of the party argued that when the Union Home Minister, Mr. L.K. Advani, and the Union Human Resource Development Minister, Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, could continue in office despite being chargesheeted in the Babri Masjid demolition case, there was no case for the RJD Government to step down.

The BJP general secretary and spokesperson, Mr. M. Venkaiah Naidu, said thatwhile the cases against the Yadav couple related to moral turpitude, those against the Union Ministers were in the category of political agitation. He said since 1947 to date no person who had been chargesheeted in a corruption case had continued in office. The AICC general secretary in charge of Bihar, Ms. Mohsina Kidwai, said the Congress(I) Working Committee would take a decision on the latest developments in the State. The Congress(I) had forged an alliance with the Rashtriya Janata Dal party ``and not with an individual''.

The Bihar Chief Minister, Mrs. Rabri Devi, being granted bail has eased the pressure on the Congress(I) to some extent, giving the party some time to figure out what to do.

Cong. MLAs reluctant

One of the factors that the CWC would have to consider is the reluctance of the party's MLAs in Bihar (all of them Ministers) to snap links with the RJD. Even those dissatisfied with their portfolios are of the opinion that the Congress(I) should continue supporting the RJD.

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