NEW DELHI, March 15: The Congress and Left parties which stood by the Rashtriya Janata Dal when its Government in Bihar was dismissed, are still grappling with their stand on the March 17 vote of confidence to be moved by Chief Minister Rabri Devi.The Congress has not yet decided whether or not to support the Government motion. The CPI, whose State unit has taken a very harsh view of the RJD dispensation there, is equally indecisive, while the CPI(M) indicated that it would give its support, though it is not at all happy with the Rabri Devi Government's performance on the implementation of land reforms.The Janata Dal too is in the same boat. While its chief Sharad Yadav said that the 17-member legislature party would vote against the Government, a major section of the JD's national leadership is for backing the RJD. Five of its Lok Sabha members, including former prime ministers H D Deve Gowda and I K Gujral opposed the motion for ratification of President's Rule in Bihar. The sixth, Ram Vilas Paswan,who is a known foe of Laloo Prasad Yadav, voted for it.The Congress is still playing a cat and mouse game with the RJD. It had earlier said that Rabri had lost the moral right to stay in office following the Dalit massacres in Jehanabad district, but then opposed the Centre's motion on President's Rule in Parliament.Tomorrow, the Bihar CLP, which has 26 members, are meeting in Patna in a situation where the party stand has become crucial following the decision of four Independent MLAs to oppose Rabri. That makes the Congress support to Rabri essential for her survival and Sonia has not yet indicated her mind on this.Congress leaders in Bihar are in no state to make their line clear, with some MLAs opposed to the RJD while others are in support. The State unit is still recovering from the shock of Sonia's decision to back the RJD. No one has a clue yet on what 10, Janpath will finally decide, but a ``conscience vote'' is being seen as a possible way out.Though not fully reconciled to the idea ofsupporting the RJD, the CPI(M) has indicated that it will give its assent to the crucial 17th March vote in the State Assembly.The CPI(M)'s ambivalence towards the Laloo-Rabri duo stems from the RJD's reluctance to take up the all important issue of land reforms, which underlies the violent Dalit massacres that have wrecked the State.But, after having demanded and achieved revocation of Article 356 imposing President's Rule in the State, the CPI(M) sees no logic in not supporting Rabri Devi's confidence motion.``If we worked so hard to have Article 356 revoked, we will not again cause a situation that would lead to the necessity for President's Rule being imposed again,'' CPI(M) General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet said.But his criticism of the Laloo-Rabri Governments was sharp. ``Bihar is a state where the least has been done for land reforms. In many instances, even the land records are not there, what to talk of land reforms,'' Surjeet told journalists.Surjeet's residence here was thevenue for a pow-wow between leaders of CPI(M), RJD and Janata Dal. Surjeet, West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu, SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav and Laloo Yadav discussed the situation in Bihar, even as they sought to reach an understanding on the future shape of a Third Front alternative. Surjeet said he told Laloo in no uncertain terms that the land reform agenda would have to get priority. ``We've made clear that certain measures like land reforms and relief to the poor and backward sections have to be taken immediately,'' he said.
