The Hindu : The die is cast in U.P.

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 18, 2002

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The die is cast in U.P.

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI APRIL 17. The broad outlines of a formula for power-sharing between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh seem to have already been worked out and the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, has called a meeting of the BJP State leaders tomorrow to place the contours of the formula before them and seek their approval.

Senior leaders have also indicated that a Parliamentary Board meeting of the BJP to formally put its stamp of approval on the idea of a BSP-BJP coalition could be held by Friday.

Over the past week and more, there have been a series of meetings among the BJP Ministers, L. K. Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, and the BSP leaders, Kanshi Ram and Mayawati. The process began even before the BJP's national executive at Goa, but it certainly gained momentum after the BJP-Telugu Desam Party standoff on the Gujarat issue.

At a meeting between Mr. Advani and Mr. Kanshi Ram on Tuesday, the broad details of the agreement were hammered out. Naturally, Ms. Mayawati would be the Chief Minister, with the BJP getting the post of Deputy Chief Minister, for which the two strong contenders are Om Prakash Singh and Lalji Tandon.

On the Speaker's post, there is still a lack of clarity. Although the BJP has been insisting on the Speaker's post, the BSP is wary of conceding it. The last time the two parties shared power in the State, the BJP Speaker, Kesri Nath Tripathi, split the BSP and some other parties.

The BJP leaders today said informally that power-sharing would be on a 50:50 basis with about 25 Ministers each from the two political formations. The BJP would have to concede several ministerial berths to its allies, especially the Rashtriya Lok Dal of Ajit SinghThe former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Rajnath Singh — a staunch opponent of a Mayawati-led government — also seems reconciled to the inevitable.

He is reported to have said that sometimes the party had to sacrifice in the interest of the State — in this instance, the State needed a stable government.

Even as the party leadership is going ahead with the plans to install Ms. Mayawati as Chief Minister, the BJP leaders predict a further erosion of the party's popularity rating in the State where for the third time it will be helping the BSP come to power.

On the BSP too, the fallout may be adverse. Already the BSP leader and former Congress Minister, Arif Mohammed Khan, has threatened to resign from the party to protest the coalition with a party indulging in "genocide" in Gujarat

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