The Janata Dal yesterday said that the United Front government would not be dictated by any party including the Congress on matters related to the Union budget.
The Dal political affairs committee which had an hour-long meeting yesterday felt that since the budget was the prerogative of the Prime Minister and the finance minister, there would not be any discussion with other parties on the matter.
However, Dal working president Sharad Yadav told newsmen late last night that suggestions from all political groups would be welcomed and pre-budget exercises were already underway. Harek admi se puchkar to budget banaya nahin ja sakta hai. (Each and every person cannot be consulted to formulate the budget), Yadav said.
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He also said that the national development council was already meeting to discuss the approach paper for the ninth plan and the council had representatives from all parties.
The Dal political affairs committee met to review the ramifications of the recent developments in the Congress party which is supporting the government from outside. It observed that there should be consultations with all the UF constituents and the Congress on all policy issues, except the budget.
Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, who attended the meeting, had called on Congress President Sitaram Kesari at the latters residence on Tuesday night. Dal sources said that he had a cordial discussion with Kesari.
In the light of this development, Dal political affairs committee observed that there was no threat to the UF government as there was no threat of Congress withdrawing its support in near future.
Surprisingly, the political affairs committee meet did not discuss the issue of interrogation of Party president Laloo Prasad Yadav for his alleged involvement in the fodder scam. Dal sources ruled out any immediate change of guards either at the Bihar legislature party leadership or the party presidentship. Dal leaders sought to defend Yadav arguing that he had merely been interrogated and no charges had been framed against him warranting his stepping down from either of the post.
Besides discussing its strategy in the light of developments in the Congress, the Dal political affairs committee also discussed the coming assembly elections in Punjab and the partys organisational elections, Sharad Yadav said.
The party has decided to hold four rallies, one each in Orissa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, to expand partys base in these areas. The suggestion to this effect was made by senior Dal leader Biju Patnaik. He said that the party organisation was lying dormant and there was a need to revive it. The best way to do so was through holding rallies, he observed.
According to a PTI report, Yadav, who was grilled by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the multi-crore fodder scam, apprised his partys leaders about the prejudiced attitude of the investigating agency towards him as the party appeared to be concerned over the possible adverse fallout of the probe.
Though the PAC did not discuss the issue in the presence of the Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, who came a little late for the hour-long meeting, he is said to be concerned over the possible adverse fallout of the investigations. None of the leaders who participated in the meeting at the residence of the Prime Minister, appeared to have raised the issue merely on the basis of media reports on the CBI questioning him on his alleged involvement in the scandal. They said the leaders did not want to precipitate matters even before the CBI had come out with anything official on the issue.
Party sources, however, said that the Prime Minister is understood to have discussed the issue with some senior party leaders about the implications of the probe.
The leaders were understood to be of the view that the recent developments in the congress would not have any immediate impact on the stability of the United Front government.
Sharad Yadav, however, said that neither the fodder issue nor the developments within the Congress figured at the meeting.
He said that the meeting decided to hold kisan-mazdoor rallies in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, intensify its membership drive, particularly in the tribal areas, and its possible seat-sharing arrangements with the Left parties for the coming assembly elections in Punjab.