Bhandari offers to quit

As far as the BJP government is concerned, the reinstatement of the Rabri ministry was bad enough. To have the Governor resign would be tantamount to accepting that his report was unwarranted and would come as a second slap for the Government.

The irony of it all is that only last month the government was in favour of Bhandari8217;s exit. The hurt BJP leader had packed up and come to Delhi, refusing to stay at Bihar Niwas until he was persuaded by the prime minister to return to Patna. Today he is keen to quit, and the Government wants him to stay on.

Bhandari8217;s predicament is that he may have to read the Governor8217;s address in the Bihar Assembly at the start of theBudget session which may contain adverse references to the BJP and the RSS.

He has already indicated that he may not like to read such an address, and that could create an unprecedented crisis. Some RJD leaders have let it be known that they will do everything possible to embarrass him now. Rabri Devi went so far as to use unparliamentary language against him.

He may therefore want to be shorn of his responsibility before the session begins. The chief minister has been given 10 days to prove her majority in the House.

Sources in the BJP feel, however, that as things stand now, the Government would have to agree to replace Bhandari, though it may want to wait a while before doing so. The RJD can be expected to make the going tough 8212; and even humiliating 8212; for him.

The decision to replace Bhandari with a non-political administrator last month was taken by Vajpayee and Advani together, and both George Fernandes and Yashwant Sinha were privy to it.

But the plan came unstuck when Advani made themistake of announcing it to a television reporter. Bhandari, who was never too keen to go to Bihar in the first place and had to be persuaded thought the idea was RSS leader K S Sudershan8217;s, was naturally offended when he heard of his imminent ouster on television. Had he been approached by senior party leaders first, he would have readily agreed to quit.

The idea had been to bring a non-party man as governor during President8217;s rule to demonstrate non-partisanship. It was also felt that it might be easier for the Congress to support President8217;s Rule, or abstain in the vote, if a BJP man and an avowedly RSS member was not in the Governor8217;s seat.

Sources say Advani had not talked to Bhandari because he was waiting for the prime minister to return from Jamaica to decide on his successor before broaching the subject with the governor, even as various names were being tossed around.

But Advani8217;s slip to the media preempted any change.

It is also learnt that at one stage Advani had offered to resign. TheBJP8217;s allies had made a case for the revocation of President8217;s rule when it became clear that the Congress8217; decision to oppose it would lead to its defeat in the Rajya Sabha. They urged the BJP not to subject them to vote for something 8212; Article 356 8212; which they had opposed all along.

Advani had however made a strong case for getting the proclamation ratified by the Lok Sabha, arguing it would give political legitimacy to the action.

When it was pointed out that pressure would mount on the Government to step down if it failed to get a majority 8212; and would be seen as a vote of no-confidence in the Vajpayee ministry 8212; Advani had reportedly remarked that if the principle of accountability had to be enforced, then the ministry which had initiated the move would do it, implying that he would be willing to step down.