MLAs paraded before Kalam

President summons Jharkhand governor, PM consults Attorney-General.

Dan Brown will want to re-create in prose the turn of events in Jharkhand-related matters. President APJ Abdul Kalam summoned Jharkhand Governor Syed Sibtey Razi to Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was reportedly "upset" with Razi and after precision networking, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) paraded all their MLAs before the President today.

The President summoned the governor to "discuss" how the support of Independents was ascertained for the Congress-Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) combine in the state as top Congress leaders distanced themselves from the action taken by the governor with the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) suggesting that Singh was "upset" with Razi.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) today paraded before Kalam 41 MLAs from Jharkhand to prove its majority in the 81-member Assembly and expose the "perfidy" of Razi. The President assured NDA leaders that he would do whatever he could after his meeting with the Governor tomorrow. As can be imagined, emotions ran high at the meeting with the President.

After heading a delegation that accompanied the MLAs""30 BJP, six JD(U) and five Independents""BJP chief LK Advani said demands were made that the Shibu Soren government be dismissed and NDA leader Arjun Munda be sworn-in chief minister, and that the governor should not nominate the Anglo-Indian member to the House before Soren's confidence vote.

Advani said the President told them that he had heard the NDA delegation yesterday and the MLAs today, and had called the governor. "I will talk to him. Then what I can do I will do," the President was quoted as saying by Advani.

According to sources, the Jharkhand governor is likely to be asked to direct the chief minister to prove his majority on the floor of the Assembly at an early date. Razi has given Soren time till March 21 to seek a trust vote in the House.

The BJP also declared that it would not let Parliament function till an NDA government was installed in Jharkhand. Parliament remained adjourned for the second consecutive day over developments in Jharkhand after angry BJP members disrupted both Houses with loud protests and sloganeering.

To figure a way out of the embarrassing mess, a high-level meeting of Congress leaders, which included party chief Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and several senior central ministers including Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambaram, today took stock of the political situation in the wake of developments in Jharkhand, Bihar and Goa.

The Prime Minister, and even certain senior Cabinet ministers, are said to be unhappy with the "partisan" image that the governor has now acquired, in turn casting a shadow over the ethical integrity of the Congress-led government.

The Prime Minister also had consultations with Attorney-General Milon Banerjee in the wake of the political developments in Jharkhand. The meeting between Singh and Banerjee at the Prime Minister's official residence lasted for half-an-hour.

The Congress, which has come under attack, sought to distance itself from the issue. "Congressmen and women, sometimes in their enthusiasm, may do their extra bit but the direction from the party leadership is always clear that they should abide by the Constitution," party general secretary Ambika Soni told reporters.

Congress allies have reacted with caution on the issue. The Left parties, which had refused to take a stand on the Governor's behaviour yesterday, offered muted criticism today. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, however, said the Jharkhand governor was justified in his actions.