Pms Return Raises Bjp Hopes On Up

Some senior BJP leaders like party general secretary Sunder Singh Bhandari rushed to Lucknow in order to make fresh efforts to persuade other parties MLAs to declare their support to the BJP.

A senior BJP office-bearer said the BJP had realised that its single-largest party status was not enough to force Governor Romesh Bhandari to invite the BJP to form a government in Uttar Pradesh. The BJP, thus, has been making efforts to persuade some of the Congress MLAs to form a separate group and declare thier support for the BJP.

The party has been in constant touch with these Congress MLAs who have assured the BJP of their support if it was invited to form government, a senior BJP office-bearer claimed. However, the party has been persuading them to split the Congress and declare their support to the BJP in return for anything other than chief ministersip, he disclosed. The BJP was sure that once it formed government, there were many MLAs from the BSP and the SP as well who would support the government either directly or by abstaining from voting during the governments confidence vote, he held. The crucial question was Bhandaris invitation to the BJP, he pointed out.