Gujral against sacking Laloo

NEW DELHI, June 24: Prime Minister I K Gujral has made it clear to the United Front leaders that short of dismissing a democratically elect...

NEW DELHI, June 24: Prime Minister I K Gujral has made it clear to the United Front leaders that short of dismissing a democratically elected government in Bihar, he would make every other effort to make Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav resign for his alleged involvement in the multi-crore fodder scam.

He is understood to have told Laloo baiters that the Centre had no legal and constitutional authority to dismiss a state government merely because a chief minister had been chargesheeted by a prosecuting agency. It was a “moral issue” for the person concerned to resign and efforts should be made to persuade Laloo to resign.

Gujral also said that the UF government had accepted the report of the Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State relations which forbade dismissal of a government without an explicit report of the state governor.

Laloo enjoys support in the state Assembly and there is no law in the country which says that a chargesheeted person cannot hold a public office.

It was due to these reasons that the Union Cabinet which met here this morning did not discuss the political situation in Bihar. Although some newspapers had reported that the Cabinet will discuss the Bihar situation, an official spokesman made it clear in the evening that the issue did not figure at all in the meeting.

Senior Janata Dal leaders told The Indian Express that the Prime Minister formed an informal cabinet sub-committee under the leadership of Railway Minister Ram Vilas Paswan to find a solution to the vexed issue. Paswan will interact with other constituents of the United Front and brief the Front’s steering committee in this regard on July 2.

One of the proposals being considered by the Gujral government is to call an all-party meeting to ensure that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is not able to take advantage of the situation in Bihar.

Story continues below this ad

Meanwhile, four Left parties urged the Prime Minister to demand Laloo’s resignation so that an alternative government could be formed in the state at the earliest. They, however, did not demand his dismissal.