Cong dumps Bansi8230;

New Delhi, July 14: Haryana is heading for another spell of political upheaval as the Congress today disowned the Bansi Lal Government wi...

New Delhi, July 14: Haryana is heading for another spell of political upheaval as the Congress today disowned the Bansi Lal Government within 22 days of rescuing it from collapse clearing the way for fresh political alignments.

The much-delayed announcement today by Pranab Mukherjee, AICCI general secretary in charge of Haryana, also put an end to the squabbling within the Haryana Congress unit.

The Congress said it had decided that 8220;it will not have anything to do with the Bansi Lal Government and his party in Haryana hereafter.8221; The reason, Mukherjee said, was 8220;Bansi Lal8217;s inability to fulfil his commitment of dissolving the state assembly and calling for elections.8221;

The Bansi Lal Government, which has 35 members in the 90-seat Vidhan Sabha, is now in crisis. After the BJP withdrew support to the HVP, Bansi survived the trial of strength on June 22 thanks to nine Independent MLAs and 12 Congress MLAs.

Now, Bansi Lal may have a tough time keeping his flock together. His Government has twomore years to go but Congmen say the ball is now in the court of Governor Mahabir Prasad.

The Governor could, after the Congress statement, ask Bansi Lal to prove his majority once again. Also, the Opposition parties, primarily the Indian National Lok Dal INDL of Om Prakash Chautala with his 22 members in the House, could begin working to form an alternative government. INDL sources said the party was wooing dissidents in the HVP and the ten Independent legislators in the Assembly to form an alternative government.

But an INLD spokesman told The Indian Express that his party would press for resignation of the Chief Minister whose minority government 8220;was a liability to the state.8221;

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The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress, which have 11 and 12 members respectively, have so far shown no inclination to initiate formation of an alternative government. A BJP spokesman said: 8220;The Congress should ask itself why it supported the Bansi Lal Government in the first place and why they havewithdrawn the support only now8221;.

Although Mukherjee said the party would not work for 8220;bringing down the Bansi Lal Government in Haryana,8221; the party8217;s refusal to lay blame on Bansi Lal for backing out on its commitment showed its cautious approach.

8220;Bansi Lal did not seem to be in a position to fulfil his commitment of dissolution of the Assembly,8221; Mukherjee repeatedly emphasised. 8220;I have not used any harsh words against Bansi Lal, which allude to not-so frozen relations between the Congress high command and the HVP.8221; Mukherjee also said there was no scope for a merger of the HVP with the Congress as 8220;Congress had no such inclination8221;.