The Hindu : Opposition disappointed over Mulayam's stand on front

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 04, 2004

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Opposition disappointed over Mulayam's stand on front

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI. JAN. 3. Major Opposition parties hoping to form "fronts'' to take on the National Democratic Alliance in the next Lok Sabha polls have questioned the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mulayam Singh Yadav's, statement that such formations have always worked to the advantage of the of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Expressing disappointment at Mr. Yadav's refusal to be a part of any `front,' senior Opposition leaders said this position of the Samajawadi Party leader stood out as a "sore thumb'' in the midst of hectic efforts by both the Congress and the Left parties to cobble together a front.

The idea behind such a formation, argue its protagonists, is to minimise the chances of a split in the anti-NDA vote, and that is why they find the reason held out by Mr. Yadav for not being a part of it as "rather perplexing."

Most Opposition leaders also find the U.P. Chief Minister's reasoning flawed. "The very idea of an electoral tie-up is to ensure that the secular vote is not split; how can he say that it divides the Opposition," asks a senior leader. Opposition circles are surprised by Mr. Yadav's negation of the idea of such an arrangement especially in view of the fact that he has on several occasions benefited from such an arrangement.

These leaders point to his tie-up with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in 1993, which helped him become the Chief Minister for the second time. "If the formation of a front works to the advantage of the BJP then why has he formed a front with Ajit Singh, Kalyan Singh and the Congress in U.P.," says an Opposition leader.

The votaries of the Third Front argue that their formation would actually hurt the BJP by depriving it of its main poll plank of converting the Lok Sabha elections into an Atal Bihari Vajpayee versus Sonia Gandhi battle. "When there are two fronts, it automatically means that Mrs. Gandhi is not leading the Opposition. Once that becomes clear the BJP's main poll plank will be taken away from it," says a senior heartland leader.

These leaders argue that even if the U.P. Chief Minister has Prime Ministerial ambitions, they would be best served if he became the leader of the proposed third front. "He comes from a state that sends the largest number of MPs and his party has every chance of emerging as the single largest constituent. He can then stake his claims if such a situation arises after the polls," says a leader of the Janata parivar.

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