Author: Pioneer News Service
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: April 29, 2004
A day after gloating over the Exit
Poll prediction of a hung Parliament, leaders in the Opposition camp have
already started questioning each other's claims for the top job.
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo
Prasad Yadav, in an attempt to checkmate his arch-rival Mulayam Singh Yadav
of the Samajwadi Party, on Wednesday said in case of a hung Parliament,
a non-NDA Government will be installed "minus Mulayam".
Meanwhile, the Congress, which on
Tuesday had claimed it was confident of forming a Government with the support
of its allies and the Left, was virtually snubbed by West Bengal Chief
Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, who harped on the possibility of a "non-
Congress, non-BJP" Government. The infighting has erupted in the Opposition
camp even though half of the country is yet to go to the polls and even
the most conservative estimate has projected a lead of the NDA over the
Congress-led alliance. Exposing the chink in the Opposition's armour, Mr
Laloo Prasad Yadav accused the SP chief of splitting the secular vote bank
by fielding candidates "everywhere, including Bihar".
"Already, the Prime Minister has
indicated that Mulayam Singh is very near to him. With the collusion of
the BJP, he (Mulayam) has set 'vote-batwa (vote-splitter)' candidates everywhere,
including Bihar," the RJD leader told a private news channel.
He refused to acknowledge Mr Mulayam
Singh Yadav as part of the secular alliance and ruled out seeking his support
for making the magic number. "He is not anti-BJP," he said.
Asked whether he was in the race
for prime ministership, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav said: "One day I will become,
not tomorrow."
The Congress on Wednesday refrained
from commenting on the warring Yadavs and claims and counter-claims of
its prospective allies vis-a- vis Government formation. When asked for
comments on Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav's stand on excluding the SP chief from
a non-NDA Government in future, Congress spokesman Anand Sharma said: "Why
should we comment on this through the media. Let the election results come
and we shall see."
Both Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav and
Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav have been in the reckoning for Prime Minister's job
in the past. In the 1996 United Front experiment, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav
effectively prevented Mr Mulayam Singh
Yadav from becoming the Prime Minister.
A non-descript H D Deve Gowda did the honours then. On who will lead the
non-NDA Government, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav said that Congress president
Sonia Gandhi might head it. If she refuses, we will sit together...Anybody
can become... We have sufficient candidates, superior than Atal Bihari
Vajpayee," he said.
On whether it considered Mulayam
Singh an ally, Jaipal Reddy had said that although in the pre-polls alliance
they had differences, the Congress perceives SP as "secular-minded." The
Left parties comprising the third-largest group inside Lok Sabha kept to
the non- committal line while responding to the RJD chief's remarks about
Mulayam Singh.CPI secretary and spokesperson S Faizee said, "a secular
majority will be formed without excluding anybody." When asked what his
party made of Mr Yadav's claim of a non-Mulyam Government, Mr Faizee added:
"How can we say anything right now. The head of such a formation will be
decided by consensus only after the elections are over."Earlier, CPI(M)
politbureau member Sitaram Yechury had said that a lot would depend on
the number of seats the secular parties had in the final countdown.
Meanwhile, predicting a hung LS,
former PM Chandra Shekhar and V P Singh said a Third Front Government looked
unlikely."A third person (becoming PM) is not a third force," Mr Chandra
Shekhar told reporters when asked what role he saw for the Third Front
in the event of a hung House.
Mr Singh, who was also present,
said it looked like there would be a hung Parliament adding those projecting
more than 300 seats for the NDA were "day dreaming."According to Mr Chandra
Shekhar, the realignment of forces in the post-poll scenario would gravitate
towards the camp that would most likely be in a position to form the government.
commenting on which way Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav would go, he said, "as much
as I know Mulayam, he will not support the NDA. He will do so only after
leaving politics."
