Some of Congress president Sitaram Kesaris opponents in the party are quietly waiting to oust him from party leadership if his bid to become Prime Minister fails. Sharad Pawar and PV Narasimha Rao are among the leaders who have maintained a discreet silence through much of the current crisis.
To prepare their arguements for his resignation, they have tactically expressed full support to his bid. His arch-rivals, Jagannath Mishra and Rajesh Pilot met him and told him that, as Congressmen, they were behind any Congress bid to form a government.
Mishra and Pilot are close to Kesaris predecessor, PV Narasimha Rao. Sharad Pawar, the Congress Lok Sabha floor leader, is also in touch with this axis. Mishra met Rao and Pawar on Wednesday before going to meet Kesari. According to a member of the Rao camp, Kesari asked for the meeting to talk truce.
Mishra said the meeting was essentially to iron out some differences over the Bihar unit. Indeed, Mishras men were immediately reinstated as office-bearers of the state party.
For all the bonhomie, the eyes of the entire Rao group were on the outcome of the hearing this morning on the Tanwar murder case. The careers of a number of senior Congress leaders could hang on what the Delhi Police tells the court.
Despite the assurances of support, some of Kesaris managers were despondent yesterday. They said there was no further progress in their hectic efforts over the past four days to cobble together the numbers required for him to form a government. Meanwhile, a member of the Pawar camp said some of them intended to start a signature campaign asking that elections must be avoided. Between their public backing for Kesaris bid and this signature campaign, the Rao-Pawar axis seemed to be preparing to hoist Kesari further on his own petard.
If his bid fails, he cannot continue as Congress president. They will demand his resignation in the CWC, said an AICC office-bearer.
Kesaris camp seemed to be looking for leeway for maneouvre. One of the prime movers behind Kesaris bid, senior CWC member K Karunakaran, yesterday made a statement indicating that all that this camp now wanted was for Gowda to go. Like other Kesari backers in the capital, Karunakaran told reporters in Thiruvanthapuram that Gowda was in touch with BJP leaders.
Asked if the Congress expected Kesari to lead the alternate ministry, Karunakaran said that, as parliamentary party leader, he would naturally head the ministry, but it was a matter on which Kesari would exercise his option, he added. He refused to be drawn into a discussion on the chances of an alternative ministry being formed under the Tamil Maanila Congress leader, G K Moopanars leadership.
According to agency reports, Karunakaran said his party was firm that Deve Gowda should resign, but kept the doors open on the alternative set-up at the Centre. Participating in a meet the press programme Karunakaran ruled out reconsidering the decision on withdrawal of support to the Deve Gowda government. If there was no alternative to an election, the Congress was prepared to face it, he said.
There is no question of our entertaining the UF request for reconsidering our decision on withdrawal of support. Deve Gowda will be Prime Minister until April 11 only. Although it is better to avoid an election at present, the Congress is prepared to go before the people if there is no alternative to it, Karunakaran said.
Karunakaran said the Congress would vote against the Deve Gowda government in the confidence vote.
Asked if the Congress would not have any inhibition in voting with the BJP against the government, Karunakaran said: The situation would have been different if it was no confidence motion brought in by the BJP. But since it is a confidence motion, we will not be bothered who all will be voting against it, as we have withdrawn support. To a question why the Congress believed that the President would call the party to form a government after the UF ministry fell, Karunakaran said: The President will act according to the Constitution and precedents.
Questioning Deve Gowdas secular credentials, the Congress leader maintained that the first thing that was done on Gowdas behalf soon after the Congress withdrew support was to make contact with BJP leaders. But he declined to disclose the names of those who had contacted the BJP leaders. Asked if the Congress expected Sitaram Kesari to lead the ministry if the party was called to form a ministry, Karunakaran said as parliamentary party leader, Kesari would naturally be the person to head the ministry.
But it would be a matter on which Kesari would exercise his option, he said.
He refused to be drawn into a discussion on the chances of an alternative ministry being formed under the Tamil Maanila Congress leader, G K Moopanars leadership.
The Congress had certain aims in extending support to the Gowda government, but right from the start these were set at nought by the UF government.
The ministry had miserably failed the Congress in all its efforts to enlist its cooperation to keep communal forces away from power, as was seen in the developments in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, Karunakaran said.
Despite being the main party propping up the ministry from outside, its views on different matters were ignored by the UF, which did not care to consult it on the budget. The Congress had conveyed its displeasure to the UF, but to no avail.
The decision to withdraw support was not taken hastily as was being alleged, he said. The CWC had discussed the matter in detail and authorised the party chief to take appropriate decisions and announce it at the appropriate time, he said.
It had by now become clear that a coalition, mainly of regional parties, would not be able to provide a stable administration, he said.
