Janata Dal Polls Not Possible By July 3, Says Raghuvansh

Union minister of state for food and consumer affairs Raghuvansh Prasad Singh yesterday said it was not practically possible to conduct the Janata Dal (JD) presidential poll by July 3 as directed by the Supreme

Court and indicated that the apex court might be approached to extend the deadline.

We will first assess the time frame in which the poll can be held and may be we will then have to appeal to the Supreme Court to extend the deadline in view of the practical difficulties, Singh told reporters here. The court has asked Singh and Madhu Dandavate to conduct the JDs organisational election by July 3 after disposing of complaints of irregularities in the electoral college within three days from Tuesday.

Singh said, Out of the three days allotted by the apex court, two days have already gone in getting the order and leading its contents. Only one day is left to dispose of the complaints, he said. Moreover, he explained, with Dandavate away at Madras, he could not take a unilateral decision. We have to undertake the exercise jointly, he remarked adding that only after his return to the capital, he could assess the minimum number of days required for the job.

Singh said that to honour the court order, he would hold talks with senior party leaders, including Prime Minister I K Gujral, former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, party president Laloo Prasad Yadav and his challenger for the partys top post Sharad Yadav.

He said he had two main concerns to keep the party united and to prevent it from getting de-recognised.

In an obvious reference to the Eelection Commissions threat of de-recognising the party if it failed to conduct the poll within the deadline, Singh said, We are not going to be cowed down by any threat from any quarter.

At the same time, he said, he did not want to undermine the court.

For keeping the party intact, he said, he would talk to senior leaders for an amicable solution to the current bitterness over the election.

To a question whether he could do justice to the election since he was considered a Laloo loyalist, Singh said he was in no particular camp. Otherwise, Sharad Yadav would not have agreed on my name (for conducting the poll), he said.

Singh, who belongs to Bihar, was among those who signed a memorandum submitted by pro-Laloo MPs to the Prime Minister urging him to use his clout with senior party leaders to get Yadav a six months extension as party chief.