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36 BJP legislators in UP threaten to quit

In a bid to pressure the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership to change the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, 33 members of the state legislative assembly and three members of the legislative council submitted their resignations to party president Shashikant 'Kushabhau' Thakre this afternoon and gave him "one week's ultimatum" to resolve the matter.

After a two-hour meeting with Thakre, who is recovering from a cataract operation, S S Dang, leader of the dissident group, told reporters the party chief gave them a patient hearing and assured them that their demands would be considered.

The dissidents told Thakre that under Kalyan Singh's leadership, the BJP would suffer a setback in the state in the forthcoming election. They have been demanding a change in the leadership for quite some time.

The dissidents had met Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee yesterday to apprise him of the situation in the state.

Asked about their next step, Dang said they would have another round of talks soon.

He said the number of dissidents in the state had increased to 75.

But in Lucknow, Chief Minister Kalyan Singh insisted his leadership was not under threat, and ruled out the possibility of a mid-term assembly election in the state.

He feigned ignorance about the submission of resignation letters to Thakre. "What is wrong if somebody from the party goes and meets the leadership?" he retorted when told that some dissidents had called on Thakre.

The chief minister said, "We will have to face the challenge of [a mid-term Lok Sabha] election unitedly, as every one of us realises the importance of Uttar Pradesh in the coming election."

Asked if the dissidence amounted to indiscipline, he said, "I would rather not comment on it because it has to be decided by the party leadership."

The chief minister said he would discuss with senior party colleagues Kalraj Misra and Lalji Tandon the political scenario in the state. "I will also talk to state BJP president Rajnath Singh as well as to those party legislators who have gone to Delhi to complain against me," he said.

Rajnath Singh described the dissidence as unfortunate and said the coming general election is bigger than any other issue now.

He appealed to the dissidents to resolve their problems through talks and devote themselves to improving the party's electoral performance.

Tandon, the senior leader who is thought to be pro-dissidents, expressed a similar view. He said the entire episode was "unfortunate", but added that most of the dissident legislators had served the party "with dedication".

Tandon said he had faith that party president Thakre would find an amicable solution to the problem. But he refused to say whether he favours a change in the state leadership before the election.

The state executive of the party is meeting in Lucknow on May 15 and 16 to discuss electoral strategy and the dissidence. Union Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani will address the meeting.

UNI

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