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Union Home Minister L K Advani's belief that the Congress must be stopped from coming to power in as many states as possible has suddenly altered the political equations in Assam, with the Bharatiya Janata Party now on the verge of tying up with the ruling Asom Gana Parishad for assembly elections on May 10.
A meeting between Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, who is also AGP president, and Advani in New Delhi last Thursday to discuss a Bodoland accord set the ball rolling for the new partnership, sources told rediff.com here.
After official discussions, when talks turned to the political scenario in the state, Mahanta told Advani that a three-way contest between the AGP, BJP and Congress would give an edge to the Congress, since the regional party and BJP share a common vote-bank in most of the 126 constituencies.
Advani, a firm believer in decimating the Congress, instantly got in touch with the state leadership in Guwahati and asked all prominent players to rush to the capital. "In Advani's view, the AGP is a lesser evil than the Congress; hence he urged us to stop opposition to the AGP," a senior BJP leader said.
Mahanta returned to Guwahati on Sunday, but left behind trusted lieutenants, Agriculture Minister and party general secretary Chandra Mohan Patowary and Rajya Sabha member Arun Sarma to negotiate the nitty-gritty of the alliance.
In Guwahati, the AGP's central executive committee authorised Mahanta to take any decision subject to ratification of a decision by the party's general body meeting scheduled for late Monday.
As a result of the new development, the future of the four-party ruling alliance hangs in balance as the Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India-Marxists have made it clear that they would be forced to come out of the alliance if the AGP gets closer to the BJP, while the Samajwadi Party Sunday ruled out a poll pact with the AGP.
Senior CPI leader and State Flood Control Minister Promode Gogoi said that his party had taken note of reports of an AGP-BJP poll alliance. He said that the CPI considered the BJP as communal, reactionary and pro-imperialist and "the CPI would have no truck with any party joining hands with the BJP".
He said that according to reports, the AGP would discuss the possibility of a poll pact with the BJP on April 2 and a clear picture on the four-party alliance would emerge by April 3.
Gogoi said that the CPI would initiate talks with constituents of the Peoples' Front to evolve a common approach in the changed political scenario. He revealed that the CPI, CPI-M, Samajwadi Party and the Janata Dal-Secular leaders met informally on Sunday evening to discuss the changed political scenario.
He also said that the CPI has started preparations to face the polls in 46 of 126 Assembly constituencies of the state, subject to adjustments with like-minded parties.
Commenting on reports of possible poll tie-up between the AGP and the BJP, CPM Assam unit secretary Hemen Das said, "We have made our stand clear. We shall be forced to come out of the alliance if the AGP joins hands with the BJP."
Das said that it was up to the AGP to decide whether they would like to stay with the Left parties or to go with the BJP. He said that the constituents of the four-party alliance were scheduled to meet before April 5 and "we shall wait up to that day to decide the course of action."
He also said that the CPI-M has started preparations to face the polls.
The failure of the AGP to make up its mind regarding a poll alliance with the BJP has left the Left parties confused. The CPI and CPI-M took the decision to stay from the alliance and called for expanding it by including other democratic and secular forces only after the AGP made it clear that the party would not forge an alliance with the BJP.
But the AGP started negotiation with the BJP when discussions between the four-party alliance were on.
The AGP, at its last general conference, had termed the BJP communal.
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