The Hindu : 'False cases booked against U.P. MLAs'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Nov 04, 2002

National

National

'False cases booked against U.P. MLAs'

By Our Special Correspondent

Samajwadi Party workers demonstrating in front of the Raj Bhavan in Lucknow, demanding the release of arrested Independent MLAs on Sunday. — Photo: Subir Roy

NEW DELHI NOV. 3. But for the Samajwadi Party's reaction to the arrest of two independent MLAs, political circles in the capital — abuzz all week over the developments in Uttar Pradesh — were relatively quiet today with the BJP breathing easy and the Congress maintaining its stated position of stepping in only if the Mayawati-led Government fell of its own "contradictions".

His bid to topple the Mayawati-led BSP-BJP Government seemingly stonewalled for the time being, the Samajwadi Party president, Mulayam Singh Yadav, was quick to protest the arrest of two independent MLAs, Raja Bhaiya and Dhananjay Singh, and described it as a reflection of the frustration of the ruling dispensation.

He alleged that "false cases" had been slapped on them by the Mayawati Government which, he claimed, was "in a minority''. Stating that the BJP MLA, Puran Singh Bundela, had filed the case against the two MLAs under duress, Mr. Singh said the truth would come out if he was allowed to speak up.

He attributed the relative calm of the weekend in U.P. to the festive season and indicated that the bid to topple the Government would begin afresh after Diwali when people would take to the streets against the Mayawati regime. This notwithstanding, the BJP was of the view that the worst was over; particularly given the chinks that have appeared in the dissident camp with at least two rebel party MLAs affirming faith in the State leadership.

Though its carrot-and-stick policy of first threatening to go in for dissolution of the Assembly and disqualification of truant MLAs, and then hinting at accommodating some of the dissidents in the government machinery appears to have paid off, the BJP is treading cautiously and monitoring the situation keenly.

The Union Human Resource Development Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi, who had played a key role in forging the BJP-BSP alliance, is said to have been pressed into the firefighting operations. Party sources said he made a brief "secret" visit to Lucknow on Saturday to talk to the MLAs.

It is after all these interventions at the highest level that the BJP today indicated the possibility of another expansion of the Mayawati Government to accommodate some of the rebel MLAs.

However, eager as the party is to maintain the facade of not yielding to dissidence, the expansion is likely to be undertaken only in December. Still, by all indications, the leaders of the dissidents, Ganga Bhakt Singh and Ramasish Rai, will not be "accommodated".

Meanwhile, the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) today condemned the arrest of the two independent MLAs and said that the Mayawati Government had no right to rule as it had been reduced to a minority. Also, the LJP urged the U.P. Governor to direct the Chief Minister to immediately convene the Assembly and prove her majority on the floor of the House.

With the Governor having made his stand clear on the demand for a special Assembly session to test the strength of the Government, there is some relief for the BSP-BJP combine.

But, held as this combine is by the lure of Cabinet berths and other posts, it would still remain a tight-rope walk for Ms. Mayawati, who would then have to placate her own flock, wanting a greater share in an already jumbo-sized Cabinet of 80.

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