NEW DELHI, Nov 18: A significant change in the political scenario during the last 24 hours was the shifting of focus - from ``whether polls?'' to ``when elections?''. For, as events unfolded, a near-unanimous view developed in the Congress that the Jain Commission report was by far the best issue the party could go to the polls with.Elections however are unlikely to take place till next year since the Election Commission is expected to complete revision of rolls only by the first week of January, according to sources in Nirvachan Sadan. Realising that its days may be numbered, the Government was charged with a fresh zeal today to try and push through certain legislations like the Women's Reservation Bill and the Lok Pal Bill which had been put on the backburner.It will try and re-introduce them before the Congress decides to bring down the government. If other parties oppose them, they would only stand exposed, highly placed sources in the Government said. The Congress has yet to determine its timetable for action, though it has put the United Front on notice saying it cannot continue to support the government with the DMK as a constituent. For the moment, the party has decided to study the Jain Commission's report, which will be tabled in Parliament on Thursday. The Government will provide copies of the 5000-page report to party leaders, who will take a few days' time to go through it.Once Parliament is in session, Kesri would have to pull out the rug from under the government on the floor of the House instead of informing the President that he was withdrawing support. For, once Parliament commences, the executive is presumed to have the confidence of the House unless proved otherwise. That is the convention, according to Lok Sabha Speaker P A Sangma.This would require the Congress to bring a vote of no-confidence against the Government. Or, if he sees the writing on the wall, Gujral himself could recommend the dissolution of the House to prevent the BJP from having another go at forming a government. Congress MPs have been asked to remain in town till November 25.The Samajwadi Party view is that the DMK should be persuaded to quit on its own to save the Government .``This is not as simple as it sounds,'' said a senior Cabinet Minister. ``For behind the DMK is the TMC and behind both is the Federal Front.'' The DMK's ouster would be the beginning of the end of the Front. Quitting the Government on its own would finish the DMK for it would be tantamount to an admission of guilt.Given the ground realities in TN, with Jayalalitha having tied up with V Gopalasamy's MDMK, Vazapadi Ramamurthy's Congress, and Subramanian Swamy's Janata Party, a delinking between the TMC and the DMK has become all the more difficult. It would only ensure the victory of the AIADMK and its allies in the next elections. As in UP, so also in Tamil Nadu, the Congress is nowhere in the picture. The resolution by the TMC at its executive meet - that the DMK should consult the TMC on all policy matters - was an indication that the two would stick together.
