Sonia, Manmohan to meet Prez to stake claim

With a comfortable majority in the Lok Sabha, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet President Pratibha Patil to stake claim to form the new government.  

This was decided unanimously at a meeting of the leaders of the United Progressive Alliance in which Gandhi was re-elected its Chairperson.  

At a meeting of the Congress and its pre-poll allies at her residence, Gandhi's name was proposed by DMK chief M Karunanidhi and seconded by Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee.  

TC, with 19 MPs, and DMK with 18 are the two large constituents of the UPA coalition after Congress which has won 216 seats. The coalition has already received support of a large number of parties and it has now the backing of around 315 MPs, much higher than the required 272 for a majority in the 543-member Lok Sabha.  

She said Gandhi and Singh would meet the President at their convenience to stake claim.  

Banerjee said she had suggested that there should be a Common Minimum Agenda for which a committee should be formed.  

She expressed concern over falling jobs and said there should be a relationship between industry and agriculture to protect employment.  

She also said that work for all and food for all should be the guiding principle for the new government.

During the discussion on the common agenda, the Trinamool Congress supremo said she also raised the issue of protection of minorities' rights as well as those of scheduled castes and tribes.  

Banerjee said she also wanted the new government to formulate a policy on agriculture and implement 33 per cent reservation for women in legislature.  

She said the issue of political "atrocities" in Bengal and Kerala was raised by her.  

Besides Banerjee and Karunanidhi, the meeting was attended by NCP chief Sharad Pawar, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, Muslim League leader E Ahamed, JMM leader Shibu Soren and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader Asaduddin Owaisi.       

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Congress leaders Ahmed Patel, Rahul Gandhi, A K Antony also took part in the discussions.

Later at a press conference, AICC General Secretary Janardan Dwivedi said that a small group of leaders would cull out common points from the manifestos of the UPA constituents.  

However, he said there was no discussion on having a common minimum programme.  

Dwivedi said there was a general consensus on carrying forward the programmes of the previous UPA government.  

"There was no disagreement on any issue in the meeting. There was no condition from any party," he said.  

On the distribution of cabinet portfolios, he said "It is the prerogative of the Prime Minister".  

With regard to cabinet berths for Congress leaders, Dwivedi said the issue would be decided by Gandhi and the Prime Minister.  

As far as the UPA constituents were concerned, the matter would be discussed with the leaders of the respective parties, he added.