Arati R Gerath talked to former Prime Minister I.K. Gujral who had set the ball rolling by approaching President K.R. Narayanan to begin the process of consultations for the formation of a national government.

You met the President recently. In what connection did you call on him?

A I submitted a very simple proposal to the President. I told him that if our political parties continue to be as divisive as they are at present, how will we deal with an election situation in the midst of thenational crisis we are facing because of Kargil? It is inherent in the present situation for the opposition to attack the Government and for the ruling alliance to attack the opposition. Yet, because we are facing a war-like situation in Kargil, this is a time when we must be united as a nation. It is paradoxical to say the least.

The government has resigned, the President has accepted its resignation, now he must make some arrangement by which the collective will of the nation is expressed in administration. He can do this by ensuring more participation in government by all elements of our polity. Call it by whatever name you wish, a national government, a composite government....

What was his reaction?

Nothing. And I didn't expect one from him.

How do you envisage this kind of government?

It is not for me to decide what sort of arrangement should be made. The President must work out what is feasible.

You see, at the moment, the President is the only elected person in office.The Lok Sabha has been dissolved. The government has resigned. The security of the nation is the President's responsibility. He must ensure that the united will of the nation backs up our war-like efforts.

There is no provision in the Constitution for a national or an all-party government in a situation in which the Lok Sabha is dissolved. So what can the President do?

The President has all the powers. The Constitution doesn't place any bar on him to decide what arrangements he would like to have in the interim period before the elections.

Can he head such a government?

The Constitution is weak on this. But it is not against the Constitution for the President to set up a composite government.

The government has been trying to evolve a consensus on the Kargil situation. The Prime Minister has called an all-party meeting twice already.Where are they trying to evolve a consensus?

The first skirmish in Kargil was on May 8. After that they called only one all-party meeting. Theother was a small dinner.

There is a qualitative difference between information sharing and evolving a consensus. Both the meetings were briefing meetings. Consensus involves sharing documents, even confidential papers. At the dinner, Jaswant Singh read from the same paper he had read to the press earlier in the evening.When I tried to evolve a consensus on the CTBT, I shared with Atalji even the most confidential documents. We were able to stand up to the might of the world only because of that consensus.

So are you saying the government is not sharing enough with the opposition on the Kargil crisis?

I am not criticising the government. Unless we make some institutional arrangements, how can they share secret information with us. For example, unless I am sworn in, how can I see classified papers? It was different in the case of the CTBT. That did not involve a sensitive war-like issue.

You are admitting that our political parties are divisive. Do you think they can sit together in anational government? Is it at all possible?

During the war in England, even Atlee was in Churchill's government. The situation today is totally unprecedented. There is a big time gap between the dissolution of the Lok Sabha and the elections. At the same time, we have a war-like situation. We have to come together to fight this crisis.I have a simple point. To whom is this government accountable? It is a defeated government, a resigned government. It is not for them to decide whether or not to hold a Rajya Sabha session to discuss Kargil.

All the opposition parties, including the Congress, have already supported the government's efforts to clear out the intruders from Kargil. How will a national government make a difference?

It will make a difference in our dealings with Pakistan. The very expression of the united will of a nation in a democracy is important. It shows we are not talking against each other.

Do you feel in this situation, the elections should be postponed?

We stillhave some time to decide this. There is no hurry. In the meantime, we can arrive at a consensus regarding postponement of the campaign. Let us not pre-date our campaign as is being done now.

We must keep our fingers crossed that we can get over the crisis by election date. If not, a national government can evolve a consensus on whether or not to postpone elections so that our divisiveness doesn't come to the fore.

Are you trying to work on a consensus for a national government?

No. I don't want to be an activist on this issue. I am not a party leader in that sense. I have given an idea, now it is up to the President to check it out. I am not lobbying for anything. I only see hazards in the present situation.