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Third Front to form next Govt.: Ajit Singh

By Our Special Correspondent

JAIPUR, APRIL 25. The president of Rashtriya Lok Dal, Ajit Singh, today claimed that the "third front'' would form the next Government in the Centre after the Lok Sabha elections, even though the front did not formally exist at present. "Neither the Bharatiya Janata Party nor the Congress will reach anywhere near the majority mark,'' he said.

Addressing a Press conference here, Mr. Singh said the tally of National Democratic Alliance would reduce to 220, as against the current projections of 255 to 275 seats. Similarly, the Congress was unlikely to improve on its performance in the previous Lok Sabha polls, he added.

"The worst performance of the BJP will be witnessed in Uttar Pradesh where it will be thoroughly defeated, whereas the prospective constituents of third front will get at least 60 seats,'' Mr. Singh affirmed, while pointing out that the then Janata Dal and its allies had won 58 seats in the State in the 1989 elections.

Asked about the contenders for the Prime Minister's post, he said the RLD would extend support to a "suitable and strong'' contender, including the Samajwai Party chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav. "It is clear now that neither Atal Bihari Vajpayee nor Sonia Gandhi is going to become the next Prime Minister,'' he affirmed.

"The BJP's increasing anxiety can be gauged by its statements that new equations would emerge after the polls and by its claims that the BJP and SP had several similarities,'' Mr. Singh said. He pointed out that the senior leaders of SP had called the BJP's bluff and had unambiguously declared that the party would have no truck with the BJP.

The RLD chief asserted that the BJP's core beliefs, which were wedded to the Sangh Parivar's ideology, had not changed and all its pretensions of being liberal and progressive were false. "Its recent overtures to Muslims are dishonest as they are guided by political exigency,'' he said.

Mr. Singh also ridiculed the BJP's slogans of "Feel good'' and "India shining'', saying that they had been exposed by the recent tragedy of 22 women being killed in the stampede in Lucknow during the distribution of free saris.

"Thousands of poor women turned up in Mr. Vajpayee's own constituency to get free saris. Were they feeling good,'' he asked.

Commenting on the controversy involving three Ministers of the previous Congress-led Government in Rajasthan in the alleged cash-on-camera deal, he said the allegations should be probed by an independent agency other than CBI, which was functioning under "political pressure''.

The RLD has fielded its candidates in two constituencies -- Jaipur and Bayana -- in Rajasthan.

The RLD State unit president, Natthi Singh, said the party could test its strength at these two seats as of now.

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