Expansion done in hush-hush manner: Allies

NEW DELHI, Dec 5: Four allies of the BJP today accused the prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for not taking them into confidence before the Cabinet expansion and maintained that it was done in a “hush hush” manner. “It seems that BJP leadership has lost faith in us. The Cabinet expansion was done in a hush hush manner like the Pokharan nuclear explosion and nobody was consulted,” Biju Janata Dal (A) leader, Tathagat Sathpati, told a private TV channel.

Reacting to the Cabinet expansion, Shiv Sena leader, Satish Pradhan, said BJP should have taken into confidence all the allies on major issues. Expressing similar views, Lok Shakti leader M Raghupati said “though it is the prerogative of the prime minister to select his own team, even then he could have expanded it along with the allies.” Samata Party leader Prabhu Nath Singh said his party got information about the Cabinet expansion only through newspapers.

“We believe no bigger or smaller party in the coalition had knowledge of it. We alsobelieve that BJP and its leaders are acting arbitrarily.”