PM paves way for polls, calls off tour

The Lok Sabha is likely to be dissolved on February 7 to pave the way for Lok Sabha elections in April, sources revealed today. The Governme...

The Lok Sabha is likely to be dissolved on February 7 to pave the way for Lok Sabha elections in April, sources revealed today.

The Government has already re-convened the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha from January 29 and 30, respectively, to pass the interim general and Railway budgets ahead of the dissolution of the Lower House. The session will end on February 5.

Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today ‘‘postponed’’ his visit to Thailand and Australia, slated to begin from February 8, ending speculation on whether or not he would like to go abroad as caretaker prime minister. Observers expected the dissolution to be put off till his return as he would not like to go abroad as head of a caretaker government. With the visit put off, the dissolution and the consequent process for elections is bound to be advanced by a week. Accordingly, the polls, earlier expected in the second half of April may now be held in the first half.

Story continues below this ad

Official sources said Vajpayee spoke to Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Saturday, expressing inability to attend the conference of Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic Co-operation (BIMSTEC) at Phuket. This morning, Shinawatra told him BIMSTEC had been postponed. Vajpayee was scheduled to leave for Australia from Thailand.

The BIMSTEC issue sorted out, the Prime Minister met his deputy L.K.Advani and BJP chief M. Venkaiah Naidu over lunch at his residence today to discuss strategy for the coming polls. Sources said the three leaders also discussed the coming party presidential election and the reconstitution of the organisational set-up.

The BJP is concerned with a few states, beginning with Tamil Nadu, where the party has been left at the crossroads by erstwhile allies DMK, MDMK and PMK. The AIADMK, against its expectations, found no response from the AIADMK. An alliance with Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, apart from improving the BJP score, would push up the NDA tally too.

The second is Haryana, where INLD supremo and Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala is faced with an intense incumbency-factor besides a totally hostile state BJP. The alliance holds all 10 seats in the Lok Sabha. The BJP high command has to either finetune the alliance or break it off with Chautala.

Story continues below this ad

The other problem area is Jharkhand, where allies have made the going tough for CM Arjun Munda. A section of the BJP favours a dissolution of Assembly and fresh elections alongside the Lok Sabha.