Dissidents tell BJP ministers to resign

LUCKNOW: On the eve of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee''s visit, the 27 dissident MLAs and MLCs of the BJP upped the ante, demanding resignation of all party ministers from the Mayawati-led coalition government.
"We feel the BJP should support the government from outside just as the BSP was doing at the Centre," Ramashish Rai, an MLC, said at the end of a meeting attended, among others, by Ganga Bux Singh, Shiva Kant Ojha, Anil Verma, Ajit Singh and Bharat Tripathi.
The dissidents plan to meet the PM during his stay here on Saturday and Sunday to discuss the issue. For this, they have sought an appointment without routing their request through the state leadership.
The demand does not seem to augur well for the BJP, whose senior leader LK Advani had given a certificate of good governance to the Mayawati government and defended the coalition at the BSP''s "Dhikkar rally" held here on September 28.
Adding to BJP''s worry are the 12 Independents, the party''s allies, who are also unhappy over their non-inclusion in the ministry. At a dinner meeting hosted at the Taj hotel here, they too expressed their displeasure. "We have our option open and we will disclose our strategy at the right time," said one of them.
The threat came despite urban development minister Lalji Tandon volunteering to attend their dinner without being formally invited.
But Tandon seemed to be a target of criticism within his party and factionalism seemed to gain ground in spite of his warning for disciplinary action against those found guilty of misconduct. This was evident from Ramashish Rai''s statement.
Tandon had already written a letter to state party president Vinay Katiyar to seek Rai''s explanation for his recent anti-party utterances.
Referring to the show cause notice issued by the party leadership, the dissidents said: "It is the handiwork of those bent on forming the government in coalition with the BSP in spite of the BJP''s stand to sit in opposition after its dismal performance in the last assembly elections."
While refusing to be dubbed dissidents, these legislators said they were in fact working to strengthen the party and their exercise was a part of the save BJP campaign. The party was bound to suffer when the experience, seniority and deserving candidates had been ignored in the cabinet expansion. It also failed to give due representation to different castes, regions and social combinations, they argued.
"Our concern is not the ministerial berth, but the erosion in the party''s base which has been aggravated due to the behaviour of irresponsible state leadership," they said and added that "we will also seek the intervention of BJP president Venkaiah Naidu and LK Advani."