Rush To Cobble Support As Bsp-Cong Ties Flounder

Ram said he had told Kesari they should sit in the opposition. Obviously rattled by Kesari's failure so far, Ram added a warning that the alliance may not last, since the Congress had chosen to support "feudal" forces at the Centre. But the relationship had not been severed yet, he said. Ram was appreciative of a change in the attitude of some BJP leaders. He said that, particularly those from upper castes, whom he used to revile the most, had taken a more positive attitude to the sections he represented.

The BJP's senior leaders headed for Lucknow to work out either an alliance with the BSP or support for Kalyan Singh from breakaway groups. The party was said to be counting on the support of at least seven of the 13 independents. Its other likely targets are the BKKP's eight MLAs and a section of Congress.

In Lucknow, Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav too began efforts to add to the number of MLAs supporting the UF as word spread of a BSP-Congress rift. Yadav wanted to get the support of the Congress and others in order to have more MLAs than the BJP-Samata's 176. He could then stake a stronger claim to be installed, as long as the BSP did not support the BJP.

Atal Behari Vajpayee described the Kanshi Ram statement as very important development and that it would open up new possibilities.

The BJP would need the support of eleven Congress to split the CLP. Senior Congress leader Lokpati Tripathi, who had spoken twice with BJP legislative party leader Kalyan Singh on Sunday, denied such a move. However, an RSS leader claimed that CLP leader Pramod Tiwari was himself willing to lead a 20-member group to join a BJP-led government. But, this leader added, the BJP ought to seek an alliance with Mayawati. RSS leaders see a long-term advantage in a BJP-BSP alliance, to unite Hindus politically.

Kesari had made hectic efforts to persuade UF leaders and Ram to accept a compromise, whereby SP members could have important positions in a Mayawati-led cabinet. SP leaders were intransigent, saying a necessarily shortlived BJP-BSP tie-up would suit them fine. If Kesari's failure to persuade the UF is capped by a chunk of the CLP supporting the BJP, the leadership of the Congress could pass sooner than later to someone like Sharad Pawar.