NEW DELHI, November 21: There appears to be no ambiguity or difference of opinion among constitutional experts over the choices before President K R Narayanan should Prime Minister I K Gujral offer his resignation and advise him to dissolve the Lok Sabha.

Constitutional experts contacted by The Indian Express had three scenarios to offer: one, where Gujral resigns, which is accepted by the President who then appoints him as caretaker Prime Minister till the next polls.

The second, where Gujral resigns and advises Narayanan to dissolve the House. The President is duty bound to accept the resignation, uses his discretion whether to dissolve the House or not and explores all other possibilities of forming a government by inviting any political party to do so provided it can prove majority support within a few days. The third course of action, suggested by some experts is that the President can summon the leaders of all political parties in Parliament and ask them to form an all-party government.

Constitutional lawyer Rajeev Dhawan is categorical that the President should not ask the Prime Minister to seek a confidence vote in the House. Instead, it should be left to any political party game enough to table a no-confidence motion against the United Front Government. ``If the Congress wants to claim credit for bringing down the UF Government, let it show the political courage of tabling a no-confidence motion,'' he said, adding that ``this pussyfooting and brinkmanship that is being indulged in has to go.''However, the President should consult the leaders of all political parties before taking a final decision, keeping in mind three factors: One, whether Parliament is still viable to continue its task till the end of its term. Second, the expense and impact on the national economy if the country goes to the polls and third, the possibilities of an honest, viable alternative with a `working' majority, said Dhawan.

Kapil Sibal, another Constitutional expert, is of the opinion that even if the Prime Minister advises dissolution of the government, the President should consult all political parties and explore all possibilities of forming a government.

``I don't think the President should act mechanically. At the same time, he should not give any opportunity for horsetrading as this is equally dangerous for Parliamentary democracy'', said Sibal, cautioning that ``what has happened in UP should not be repeated here.''

However, if the President is prima facie satisfied that a party or a combination of parties can prove majority support in the House, then it should be allowed to take a shot at forming the government, he felt. Sibal agreed with Dhawan that the effort should be not to take people to the polls considering the enormous resources that would be required.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.