Kesari Reprimands Gowda

According to a Congress leader close to him, Kesari sternly told Gowda he was not like PV Narasimha Rao and would tear apart any one who made comments of the sort home minister Indrajit Gupta had made about the Congress during the July sittings of Parliament.

Gupta had said in his characteristic sardonic style that the people would beat Congressmen with shoes if they withdrew support to the United Front. He was later forced to apologise.

During the meeting, Gowda is reported to have expressed his helplessness to persuade Mulayam Singh Yadav to agree on Mayawati as Chief Minister. He told Kesari that relations between Yadav and Mayawati were very bad, and that it was well nigh impossible for him (Gowda) to improve them.

You are more experienced than me in politics, tell me what should I do in such a situation, Gowda is reported to have pleaded.

Political circles were agog yesterday at an anti-UF statement by UPCC President Jitendra Prasada, who has been coordinating closely with Kesari on government formation in UP.

Prasada specially called reporters to express the view that the Congress should not extend support to governments formed by other parties. He argued that voters would prefer to vote for those parties directly if they felt the Congress was going to pass on their support.

Asked to comment on Prasadas statement, the AICC spokesperson said Kesari had made his position clear at a public meeting on Thursday (Kesari had severely criticised the government and Gowda in particular). Pressed further, the spokesperson noted that Kesari had made it clear that there was no question of withdrawing support to the government.

Senior party leaders close to Kesari say the party chief is aware that Rao and his loyalists are, at least so far, determined to keep Gowdas government going. But Kesari is gradually setting the stage to take Raos place and then bring down the Gowdas government.