Other States - Uttar Pradesh   

Rift in SP, Kranti Dal ties in U.P.

By Javed M. Ansari

NEW DELHI. NOV. 25. Three months after they joined hands to help form the Government in Uttar Pradesh, all is not well among the constituents of the Mulayam Singh Yadav-led ruling coalition. Along with the drift in the relations between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, the ties between the Kalyan Singh-led Kranti Dal and the SP have also begun to deteriorate.

The immediate provocation for the downturn in the relations is the failure of the two sides to come to a seat-sharing arrangement for the current Legislative Council elections in U.P. The latest spat between the two sides has come on the heels of earlier differences springing from Mr. Yadav's refusal to split the BJP, and his insistence on continuing with Kesrinath Tripathi as the Speaker of the Assembly. Mr. Tripathi was elected on the BJP ticket.

In the days leading up to the formation of the coalition Government, Mr. Yadav was deferential towards Mr. Kalyan Singh and had even made him the chairman of the committee that was meant to formulate the strategy to checkmate the BJP and Bahujan Samaj Party leader, Mayawati. Even during the government formation phase, Mr. Yadav accommodated Mr. Kalyan Singh's son and his friend Kusum Rai in the Cabinet, a decision that caused some heartburn among his other allies.

According to seasoned political observers, the attitude of Mr. Yadav towards the BJP sowed the seeds of mistrust between the two sides — clearly, Mr. Singh wanted to do everything possible to hurt the BJP while Mr. Yadav was seen as being conciliatory. The Kranti Dal chief has made no secret of his desire to split the BJP, but Mr. Yadav has refused to oblige. The Kranti Dal leadership believes that Mr. Yadav has a tacit understanding with the BJP and is unlikely to do anything to damage its prospects in the State. "The first thing he should have done is to have finished off the BJP; this sudden change of heart is inexplicable," says a senior Kranti Dal leader.

At the heart of the problem are the strong personalities of both Mr. Kalyan Singh and Mr. Yadav.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Other States

News: Front Page | National | Southern States | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary |

Stories in this Section

• Rift in SP, Kranti Dal ties in U.P.
• Opposition hurls charges at SP in run up to Council polls

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu