The Hindu : National : SP to stay out of government

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, May 20, 2004

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SP to stay out of government

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MAY 19. The Samajwadi party has decided not to join a Congress-led government and will extend support to it from outside.

The SP general secretary, Amar Singh, said the decision was taken as the Left parties too had decided against joining the government. "We have always maintained that we will go by whatever the Left parties decide. Since they have decided to stay out, there is no point in our joining the government," he said.

The SP also made it clear that as far as it was concerned, it had no objection to Manmohan Singh taking over as the Prime Minister.

"It is for the Congress party to decide, we have nothing to do in the matter," Mr. Amar Singh said. He pointed out that his party had, in its letter of support, made it clear that it was extending support to a Congress-led government and hence there was no need to give a fresh letter of support.

Briefing the media this afternoon, Mr. Amar Singh said that though there were no strings attached to his party's support, it would not be a silent spectator if the new government did anything that was anti-people.

The SP was extending support to the Congress because there was no other alternative available to keep the BJP out. "We have done our duty to secularism by helping form a secular government," he said.

Mr. Amar Singh clarified that his party was neither a member of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) nor had its views been sought on the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) either by the Congress or the Left parties but indicated that it would be prepared to put forward its views if asked.

"We would like to be involved as much as we can in the functioning of the secular government."

Mr. Amar Singh did little to hide the differences between the two parties and admitted that the two parties were rivals for the secular space in Uttar Pradesh.

"We are fighting for the same space in U.P. and there is little chance of co-existence." He was of the view that given the political compulsions of the two parties, it would take a lot for them to work together at the Centre. "We are eyeball-to-eyeball in Uttar Pradesh, how can we join hands at the Centre?"

According to Mr. Amar Singh, the SP chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav, has decided to remain as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and give up the Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat, which he had won in the recent election.

(A PTI report from Lucknow, however, quoted Mr. Yadav as having denied that he had decided to quit his membership of the Lok Sabha.)

Mr. Amar Singh said the Rashtriya Lok Dal headed by Ajit Singh was free to join the Congress-led government.

The RLD had contested the Lok Sabha elections as an ally of the Samajwadi Party.

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