Rajnath rules out advancing elections

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT 12. The political situation in Uttar Pradesh was discussed at a high-level meeting convened by the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, at his residence here this morning. After the meeting the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr. Rajnath Singh, asserted that there was no move to advance Assembly elections in the State scheduled for February-March 2002 in the wake of the resignations by the Samajwadi Party MLAs. He was also determined to implement the new reservation policy in the State.

Important political issues, especially the expected impact of the new reservation policy to be implemented by the State Government, were discussed at the meeting, attended by the Union Home Minister, Mr. L.K. Advani, and the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prof. Murli Manohar Joshi. Senior leaders from the State - the BJP State president, Mr. Kalraj Mishra, senior Ministers Mr. Lalji Tandon, Mr. Om Prakash Singh and Mr. Harish Chandra Srivastava - were present.

Yesterday, Mr. Vajpayee summoned the State leaders for a meeting here today after the Samajwadi Party leader, Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav, announced in Lucknow that the SP MLAs in the state would resign their seats as the five-year tenure of the Assembly was coming to an end next month. Mr. Yadav has demanded that elections be held at the earliest.

The Congress Party has indicated that it would ask its MLAs to resign before October 17 when the term of the Assembly expires. However, the BJP is of the view that since the Assembly could not meet till six months after the October 1996 elections and no Government could be formed, the five-year tenure should be counted from March 1997.

Mr. Rajnath Singh alleged that the SP had directed its MLAs to resign simply to divert people's attention from the good work being done by his Government. He did not rule out his Government passing an ordinance to bring into effect job reservations for the most backward and the extremely backward castes as well as the weakest and most vulnerable castes among the scheduled castes through sub-quotas within the existing quotas.

The BJP's argument is that the reservations were being grabbed mostly by the dominant castes among the backwards and the dalits, leaving others out in the cold. The party's political calculation is that this could help bring the vote of the most backward castes and the poorest of the dalits to the BJP.

Cong. criticises Mulayam move

By Our Special Correspondent

LUCKNOW, SEPT. 12. The Congress has criticised the Samajwadi Party leader, Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav, for taking a unilateral decision regarding resignation of his party MLAs. Talking to newspersons here today, the Congress Legislature Party leader, Mr. Pramod Tiwari, said being the Leader of the largest Opposition party it would have been only proper for Mr. Yadav to consult other Opposition parties before taking the decision.

A united decision could have brought real pressure on the Chief Minister, Mr. Rajnath Singh, to dissolve the Assembly and hold fresh elections. Mr. Yadav, however, chose to take a unilateral decision.

Mr. Tiwari also found technical flaws in the letters of resignation handed over by the SP MLAs to the Assembly Secretariat and apprehended that the resignations could not be accepted by the Speaker.

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