Contrary to the views of senior Janata Dal leaders, Prime Minister I K Gujral yesterday ruled out the dropping of three Union ministers owing allegiance to Laloo Prasad Yadavs Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), and said the new group was welcome to remain part of the United Front if it believed in the common minimum programme.
Gujral said he remained a member of the Janata Dal. He will continue in office as long as he enjoyed the confidence of the United Front, and not that of the Janata Dal. He saw no difficulty in the RJD remaining in the United Front, which he described as a free platform where people come, go and also return.
Gujral dwelt on various issues related to the Dal during an interview to Home TV, and disclosed that Sharad Yadav had apologised to him in private for his behaviour in the Lok Sabha during the debate on the womens reservation bill. He also made it clear that though several leaders had demanded that he drop the three ministers, he had no intention of dropping them. The three Kanti Singh, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and Jainarain Nishad have aligned with the RJD.
Once upon a time Arjun Singh and N D Tiwari were members of the United Front. They left but their two ministers are still in the government. Once upon a time Mufti Mohammad Sayed was a part. He left. But his one member is still a part of the government. All cut and dried formulations cannot be applied, Gujral said.
He regretted the split in the Janata Dal, but said it was a matter of satisfaction that both the groups led by Sharad Yadav and Laloo Prasad Yadav had extended support to his government. He was taciturn on questions about former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda trying to undermine his government, and said he continued to have excellent rapport with Gowda. He was similarly loathe to dwell on the removal of Joginder Singh as CBI chief, on the ground that bureaucrats do not get a chance to defend themselves.
