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U.P. Government plunges into crisis

Atiq Khan

Fate of 24 Loktantrik Bahujan Dal MLAs hangs in the balance further worsening the issue

LUCKNOW: With the State Assembly elections round the corner, the Samajwadi Party Government has been plunged into a deep political crisis following the disqualification of the 13 MLAs belonging to Loktantrik Bahujan Dal, the breakaway faction of the Bahujan Samaj Party. Considering that the 13 MLAs have been disqualified with retrospective effect from August 27, 2003, a day after the splinter group of 38 BSP MLAs was formed under Rajendra Singh Rana, the fate of the 24 other LBD MLAs hung in the balance.

One rebel MLA, Udhay Bhan Singh, had lost his membership of the Assembly in 2006 following a criminal case.

Of the 13 disqualified MLAs, seven were made Ministers by the Chief Minister, Mulayam Singh Yadav, after he took oath of office on August 29,2003,while two were made chairmen of State public sector corporations with the status of Ministers of State. They are: Rajendra Singh Rana, Virendra Singh Bundela, Yogesh Patap Singh, Shailendra Yadav, Rajpal Tyagi, Jai Prakash Yadav and Dinesh Singh (Ministers), and Kazim Ali Khan and Rajendra Singh Chauhan (Chairmen of UP Tourism Corporation and UP State Pollution Control Board respectively).

Two other MLAs, Jaiveer Singh and Surendra Vikram, had been disqualfied by the Vidhan Sabha Speaker, Mata Prasad Pandey, on June 10, 2006, on a LBD petition that they had supported the BSP in the Rajya Sabha elections. Another disqualified MLA, Brijendra Pratap Singh, had jumped on the Jan Morcha bandwagon of Raj Babbar.

As Ministers of the Mulayam Singh Yadav Government, these MLAs became entitled to the perks and privileges associated with ministerial positions, besides the Local Area Development Fund of the Legislators.

Leader of Opposition in the Vidhan Sabha, Lalji Tandon, said the State was in the throes of a Constitutional crisis.

Mr. Tandon placed the Vidhan Sabha Speaker in the dock, who, he said had granted recognition to the breakaway faction of the BSP.

Mr. Tandon, however, glossed over the fact that it was former Speaker, Kesari Nath Tripathi (of the BJP) who had allowed the merger of the LBD with the SP on September 6, 2003.

Following the resignation of former Chief Minister, Mayawati, on August 26, 2003, a meeting of the 110 BSP MLAs was held at her official residence on the same day approving of her decision to quit.

On August 27, 2003, 13 BSP MLAs in two batches of 8 and 5, accompanied Samajwadi General Secretary, Shivpal Singh Yadav, to the then Governor, Vishnu Kant Shastri, and requested him to call Mulayam Singh Yadav to form the Government. Letters pledging support were handed over to the Governor. Mr. Yadav was sworn in as CM on August 29, 2003.

On September 4 and September 5, 2003, the BSP leader, Swamy Prasad Maurya, filed a petition followed by a Caveat before the then Speaker seeking the disqualfication of the 13 MLAs as no split had taken place in the party.

On September 6, 2003, an application was filed with the Speaker stating that a new group called the LBD, under Mr. Rana was formed on August 26, 2003,and requested for separate seating arrangement.

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