To keep rebels in and Mulayam out, Mayawati wields poll stick

The blurring political battlelines in Lucknow became clearer and sharper today. The BJP-BSP combine, staring at the real possibility of losi...

The blurring political battlelines in Lucknow became clearer and sharper today. The BJP-BSP combine, staring at the real possibility of losing power, appeared determined to force an assembly dissolution and contest the fresh polls together.

And Mulayam Singh Yadav, looking to capitalise on the dissent, camped in New Delhi to woo the Congress for support. If Sonia Gandhi obliges, the BJP rebels and independents may rush to him to prop up an alternative government. If she keeps him on hold indefinitely, as happened last time, his game is up.

Even as Yadav and Amar Singh were waiting for a response to their requests for an audience with Sonia, Singh called on Manmohan Singh and Motilal Vora. ‘‘We are ready to knock at the doors of all secular parties and we shall go to any extent’’, Amar Singh said, adding that his aim was to stall a mid-term poll that would put a burden on the common people.

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Sources in the BJP disclosed that Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani and Mayawati had drawn their common strategy at their luncheon meeting here on October 24.

Consequently, the BJP held out the carrot and the stick to the rebels today by offering them a meeting with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajapyee on the one hand and warning them of an assembly dissolution on the other.

Central party general secretary Rajnath Singh, deputed by the high command to help control the dissent, said, ‘‘The Prime Minister was always ready to listen to their (dissidents) grievances.’’ He said that he had already secured a green signal from Vajpayee for the purpose.

State BJP president Vinay Katiyar said that those indulging in horse-trading to break the ruling coalition ‘‘should keep in mind that Romesh Bhandari is no longer the governor of the state.’’ He said elections were inevitable if the government fell. The rebels, who met at the house of Ganga Bakht Singh today, are scheduled to meet tomorrow to finalise their stand on the offer of talks.

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Governor Vishnu Kant Shastri seemed to vindicate Katiyar when, talking to journalists at Lucknow, he ruled out convening an assembly session for a trial of strength as demanded by the independent MLAs who withdrew support from Mayawati. He said that of the 217 MLAs who had extended support to Government, only seven have withdrawn.

Asked if he would convene an assembly session, he asked: ‘‘What do you think, is it a question of reasoning?’’

Thus, having succeeded in sending its message across to the rebels, the high command was waiting for their meeting tomorrow to decide on its next move.

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