New Delhi, Aug. 25: Several non-NDA parties have snubbed Sushma Swaraj’s call for a meeting of all Opposition groups on Monday, allowing a jittery government to breathe easier.
The Left, Samajwadis, Bahujan Samaj Party, Biju Janata Dal and Telugu Desam have indicated they did not want to be seen as hobnobbing with the BJP, but sources said the key reason was their reluctance to force an election now.
These parties apparently suspected the BJP of planning to use the proposed Opposition unity to topple the government by sticking to its demand for the Prime Minister’s resignation.
Congress managers had swung into action yesterday when the possibility of these parties joining hands with the BJP seemed bright. Such a rare event would have projected the Congress as having become isolated and may have lent some legitimacy to the demand for Manmohan Singh’s departure.
The Congress approached the non-NDA parties to tell them that the real motive behind the BJP move was certain individuals’ impatience to grab power. It apparently succeeded in convincing these parties that the Prime Minister had a right to explain his position in Parliament.
Sushma had personally spoken to Samajwadi, Left, Biju Janata Dal and Desam leaders. But after their initial favourable response, these parties seemed to realise the risks of helping the BJP topple the government.
Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has already asked his cadres to prepare for an early election, was the first to back out, probably with his Muslim vote bank in mind.
A CPM change of mind followed but, sources said, CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta was still eager to join the Sushma bandwagon.
Then the Left found out that the Biju Janata Dal and the Desam too were unenthusiastic, primarily because they saw the move as a BJP project to force an early election.
Gurudas later said: “The meeting had become infructuous as nobody was attending it.”
“We have interacted with leaders of all the parties; nobody wants the Prime Minister to resign on this issue,” a senior minister told The Telegraph.
“Even in the BJP, the majority of leaders are opposed to the rigid position taken by barely a couple of individuals.”
With the BJP’s chances of sewing up a larger Opposition unity diminishing, the Congress appeared emboldened.
Its new spokesperson, P.C. Chako, said: “It would be fair on the part of the BJP to bring a no-confidence motion against the UPA government instead of immobilising Parliament on a non-issue.”
Senior ministers avoided throwing such a dare yesterday during intense grilling on the subject of a no-confidence motion.
On Monday, certain non-NDA parties may possibly state they are in favour of a Parliament debate, including an explanation from Manmohan Singh.
If Singh is forced to address the nation directly because of a stalled Parliament, these parties might distance themselves from the BJP’s tactics.
The fate of this session, however, remains uncertain as the BJP has reiterated its demand for the Prime Minister’s ouster, arguing that a Parliament debate is unnecessary at a time the whole country is discussing the matter.
