It's not all bark, we can bite too. This is the message the Congress Working Committee is likely to send to the United Front government after its crucial meeting today. There is, however, little posibility of the meeting deciding to withdraw support to the government in the near future.
Meeting in the backdrop of an increasing decibel level of partymen's criticism of the Front government, the committee has several items on its agenda: the consistent refusal of the United Front to accept Mayawati's candidature for the chief ministership in Uttar Pradesh, the stand the party would take in the forthcoming winter session of Parliament on the ratification of President's rule in the state, a review of the Front government's policies, mainly in the defence and foreign policy areas, and the promise made by the Prime Minister to repeal the controversial Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983.
Party sources said the CWC is expected to formalise the disparate voices of criticism of the Front government in the form of a charge-sheet, listing its alleged failings on various fronts. This was mainly intended to show that even though the Congress is supporting the minority government, it would brook no deviation from the party's policies. Manmohan Singh, who has been entrusted the task of monitoring the government's functioning as head of a high-powered committee, is expected to sumbit a report card at the meeting.
The idea is to bring home to the Front leaders that we are not under any great compulsion to support their government. They should not take us for granted. We want to firmly dispel the impression created by leaders like Indrajit Gupta that the Congress has no choice except to support their government, a CWC member said.
On the existing relations between the party and the Front government, the meeting is likely to see a clean division among loyalists of former president P V Narasimha Rao and Kesari's followers. While the former are said to support an ambiguous and softer line, Kesari loyalists are believed to be in favour of adopting a belligerent posture.
Sources said an important item on the agenda would be the unity moves initiated by party president Sitaram Kesari. The meeting is expected to authorise Kesari to take further steps in this regard. As part of this move, Madhavrao Scindia is likely to be the first of former Congressmen to return to the party fold. Significantly, the Congress (T) has scheduled a meeting of its executive for tomorrow, after the decisions of the CWC meeting are known.
On the Uttar Pradesh front, the CWC meeting is expected to reiterate the party's commitment to having Mayawati as Chief Minister. On the eve of the meeting, UPCC president Jitendra Prasada has already articulated the feelings of a considerable section of partymen that the support to the Front government should be withdrawn in view of the refusal to support Mayawati.
There is an air of expectancy in almost all political parties; each is waiting to see what posture the CWC takes, before taking their respective steps. Congress leaders have all along maintained that the party was unlikely to withdraw support on the Uttar Pradesh issue, but in the same breath, have reiterated that since it was the CWC which decided to extend support to the Front, it alone can decide on the support's withdrawal.
That the CWC would take a tougher position vis-a-vis the government was evident from the way the meeting between Kesari and Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda went on Wednesday night.
The meeting was said to be stormy, with Kesari taking Gowda to task for not being able to bring about a consensus within the Front on Mayawati's candidature.
Soon after the meeting, Kesari made strong remarks against the government during a day-long visit to Shimla while on the same day, Gowda remarked in Bangalore that the United Front was in office by the grace of god and the will of the people. Congress sources laughed off such a perception, and remarked that the United Front was in office by the grace of the Congress and not anybody else.
CWC members arrived in the capital from various places to attend today's meeting. It would be Manmohan Singh's first meeting after being made member of the apex party committee.
