Lucknow, March 1: Four MLAs in the Mulayam Singh Yadav government ? among the 40 caught in the defection controversy ? resigned today and Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey reverted the breakaway BSP MLAs to their status on September 4, 2003.

Allahabad High Court had yesterday quashed the erstwhile Speaker’s decision to recognise the split in the BSP and the rebel group’s merger with the Samajwadi Party.

Tonight Pandey said he would review the order as directed by the court but till it is done, the MLAs would revert to their 2003 position.

Without clarifying if the 40 legislators would be part of the treasury benches or the Opposition, Pandey said: “The group will have its independent identity and will sit in the same place they used to earlier.”

Party sources said the Uttar Pradesh chief minister may recommend dissolution of the Assembly to the governor to pre-empt any move by the Centre to impose President’s rule in the state.

Sources said the dissolution of the Assembly would ensure that Mulayam remains the caretaker chief minister till the next polls.

What, however, is holding Mulayam back is his apprehension that governor T.V. Rajeswar Rao may not accept the recommendation following the controversy over the trust vote won in a hush-hush manner and the 40 MLAs also participating in it.

Yesterday’s confidence vote may have comforted Mulayam, smarting under the humiliation he faced in Allahabad High Court, but the relief was short-lived.

This afternoon, Jaiveer Singh, Surendra Vikram Singh, Dharampal Singh and Ramji Shukla ? who had defected from the BSP to Samajwadi Party ? marched to Raj Bhavan and put in their papers. The quartet, including three ministers, are believed to have told the governor that they should be treated as MLAs from the BSP and not the Samajwadi Party.

The bad news for Mulayam is that more MLAs might now follow suit, thus raising the need for a fresh confidence vote.

Mayavati is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that is the case. Right after the high court order yesterday, the BSP chief had flown to Lucknow from Delhi and a move was afoot to woo back the rebel MLAs with the twin promises of forgiveness and poll tickets.

The BSP ruled out asking for President’s rule, as it could spark a sympathy wave for the Samajwadi Party.

Asked if his party wanted an election or President’s rule if Mulayam resigns, state Congress chief Salman Khursheed said: “We will honour whatever decision the governor takes.”