NDA ready to walk in, needs a face-saver

Responding to private requests from MPs on both sides, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, meanwhile, has sent a letter to NDA chairperson Atal Behari Vajpayee asking him to reconsider the boycott decision.

The brief letter said: ‘‘May I request you to please see that my friends in NDA join the House and take part in the proceedings? So far as I am concerned, I have always assured that all matters, which can be permitted, will be allowed to be raised and discussed in the House.’’ A section of the BJP and NDA are keen to seize upon the Speaker’s letter as a way out and return to the parliament tomorrow.

But a more powerful section feels the gesture of reconciliation must come from the PM and not the Speaker, since, as one senior BJP leader put it, ‘‘our problems are with the government and not the Speaker.’’ But the UPA and the Prime Minister are in no mood to oblige them right now, sources said.

According to senior Congress leaders, Singh is ‘‘very hurt’’ that his earlier attempts to reach out to the Opposition were ‘‘rebuffed and ridiculed.’’ The PM had called up the Leaders of the Opposition in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha (Advani and Jaswant Singh) soon after the NDA announced its boycott and urged them to return to the House. But the NDA dismissed the gesture as ‘‘insincere.’’

The Prime Minister, Congress leaders pointed out, is a ‘‘very serious and sincere person’’ and was upset at the way the NDA initially reacted to his calls. Therefore, he is averse to taking the initiative again. He would rather that the NDA made a conciliatory gesture first.

Senior Congress leader Ambika Soni said if the Opposition ‘‘desired to come back accepting their mistake—which is costing public money—then it is possible the Prime Minister may try once again.’’

Her remark that they must accept their ‘‘mistake’’ have only made things worse. The NDA hardliners who want to continue the boycott feels the statement has added fuel to fire and will further damage chances of a compromise.

But given the growing feeling within the NDA that the boycott has failed to serve much purpose and its continuation may cause more harm than good to the Opposition’s image, a formula is likely to emerge in a day or two, sources said.

One possibility is that the Speaker initiate a meeting which will be attended by leaders of both sides. The government would prefer the Speaker to be the via media but if tempers cool down, the Prime Minister, too, may make a formal gesture, sources said.