Fault Lines Sharpen Over Up

The last few days has brought Mulayam Singh Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan clearly into the Gowda-Rao axis and Kanshi Ram and Sharad Yadav into the Kesari-Yadav axis. The latter axis seems bitter about the formers role in preventing a BSP-led government from being formed and appears to be edgily waiting for opportunities to destabilise Gowdas government.

Things have reached such a pass between Gowda and Laloo Prasad Yadav that the day might not be far when the latter alongwith Kanshi Ram would exert pressure on Kesari to bring down the Front government.

An axis on these lines is very likely given the proximity between Laloo Prasad Yadav and Kesari, a Front leader said.

For his part, Kesari reportedly assuaged Kanshi Ram - and saved their alliance - by telling him that the day the Front finally refused to instal Mayawati as Chief Minister will be the beginning of the end of the Front government.

Also, the Congress president reminded Kanshi Ram of the alliances larger objective of jointly winning the north. Kanshi Ram, who has been demanding of Kesari to withdraw support to the Front government, was reportedly assuaged after such a commitment by Kesari.

A number of Janata Dal leaders close to party working president Sharad Yadav are critical of Mulayam Singh for his intransigence about allowing a BSP-Congress government. They are also uneasy about Gowda fully toeing Yadavs line.

At the meeting of the steering committee on the Uttar Pradesh situation, Bihar Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav pointedly told Gowda: Take Sitaram Kesari seriously on the Mayawati issue. P V Narasimha Rao is no longer the Congress president.

The perception has been that Rao has been soft on Gowda and vice versa. Gowda is aware that a Congress decision to withdraw support to his government would have to be taken by the CWC and implemented by Rao. And Rao could probably still call up a majority in the CWC if it were to vote.

After nobody at last Sundays CWC meeting gave a second glance to Kesari confidant Jitendra Prasadas suggestion that the party could consider withdrawing support to Gowda, Kesari has cautiously started referring to the body as the high command.

Soon after that meeting, Rao contacted Mulayam Singh. Demonstrating his priorities, Gowda went to meet Rao when he returned to the capital the next day, although Kesari was also waiting to meet him.

Not everyone in the front is pleased with Gowdas behaviour, nor Mulayam Singhs. Several Front leaders, including those from the Dal, yesterday remarked that Yadav has weakened the United Front.

A senior minister debunked Mulayam Singhs claim that he deserved the sole credit for bringing in 134 seats for the front. He should realise that his party led in 56 assembly segmemts during the Lok Sabha elections. It had secured 106 seats due to the efforts of Gowda, who gave a package for farmers and because Ajit Singh contained the BJP in his area, said the minister.

Front sources said the Bihar Chief Minister has a soft corner for Bahujan Samaj Party leader Kanshi Ram, and recalled that he and Sharad Yadav were in favour of the Front entering into an alliance with the BSP for the Uttar Pradesh election.

This was shot down by Gowda and Paswan, who had argued that Mulayam Singh Yadav alone should lay down the Fronts line in Uttar Pradesh.