PATNA, March 30: Having won the vote of confidence in Delhi, the BJP and its ally Samata Party are getting ready to pull down the Rabri Devi Government, and they are not averse to mounting pressure on Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee for the purpose.Though conscious of the fact that the dismissal may cause a public outcry and perhaps even make a martyr of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Laloo Prasad Yadav, the BJP-Samata feels this can be avoided. And the first major step in this game plan is projecting the alliance as an alternative to the scam-tainted RJD.
Nitish Kumar, Union Railway Minister and the Samata Bihar president, is believed to be the brain behind the strategy. At the same time, he insisted in an interview with The Indian Express today, that he is determined not to make his ministry a party to this.
According to him, the RJD Government needs to be dismissed as a rule of justice is not possible in Bihar under Laloo and Rabri. He termed the toppling of the RJD the main agendaof the BJP-Samata combine. Even during electioneering for the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP had promised the voters that the Bihar Government would be dismissed.
To carry out his plans, Nitish may even accept the help of Janata Dal leader Ram Vilas Paswan. Though no formal discussion has so far taken place between the two, the Samata leader feels their coming together will not jeopardise his relations with the BJP. According to sources close to the Samata, a large number of RJD leaders too are eager to switch over to their side. They reportedly include at least five prominent State ministers, who have even offered help in forming an alternative government.
Incidentally, RJD circles don't rule out such a defection. Sources say the party fears that if the RJD Government is indeed dismissed, many party leaders might choose to leave.
The Samata has already decided to hand over a charge-sheet against the Rabri Government to President K R Narayanan, the Prime Minister and Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha and urgedthem to act. Nitish says there is complete financial anarchy in Bihar, pointing out that the State Government cannot even implement measures for the welfare of the poor.
Nitish is also gearing up to revamp his party, and claims he is ready to step down as the State party president for this. He feels he cannot do justice to the post given his duties as Union Railways Minister.
He feels this is the right time for the Samata to spread its support base and the party cannot afford to be lackadaisical. The Samata plans to woo castes other than Kurmis and Keoris, its traditional support base, and even the upper castes. A reorganisation of the State unit is also on the cards.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
