Ganga Bhakt sticks to 'remove Tandon' stance

LUCKNOW: Convener of the ''BJP bachao samiti'' and suspended MLA Ganga Bhakt Singh does not seem to be enthusiastic about calling on the prime minister. "When Vajpayee is unable to restrain his own men from this kind of repressive measures, what is the rationale of meeting him," said Singh. He was referring to police action against former minister and independent MLA Raghuraj Pratap Singh.
Singh on Monday reiterated his demand that the BJP ministers pull out of the Mayawati-led government and removal of Lalji Tandon from the BJP legislature party leadership.Singh said that he would not like to visit Delhi unless repressive measures against the dissidents were stopped. He said that he might form a separate group if repressive measures continued.
Meanwhile, after cracking the whip against two senior members of the ''BJP bachao samiti'', the state leadership does not want to precipitate the crisis by dangling the sword of disciplinary action against other legislators. And for the same reason, state BJP chief Vinay Katiyar suspended only Ganga Bhakt Singh and Ramashish Rai from the party, though more than a dozen MLAs have been flexing their muscles against the party leadership.
Apparently, the pro-coalition lobby does not want to axe more MLAs. Because this will make them (the dissidents) out of the purview of the Anti-defection law, even if they do not have one third of the BJP legislators with them and vote against the government. Once expelled from the party, they would be out of the bounds of the leadership, said a political analyst. And the pro-government lobby does not want to happen.
Senior dissident leader Shiva Kant Ojha told Times News Network on Monday that they were not opposed to meeting the prime minister but the Uttar Pradesh leaders should create a conducive atmosphere for the meeting. After all, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the tallest leader of the party, said Ojha.
Vinay Katiyar told TNN that the dissident legislators would be pardoned if they behaved properly and gave up their dissidence. He said he had suspended senior party leaders for their dissident activities "with a heavy heart". Katiyar expressed his unhappiness over dissident leaders'' enthusiasm in meeting Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh. Asked by mediapersons what he felt about the dissidents'' continuing on warpath, Katiyar said that if they did no want to remain in the party, they were free to go. But so long they were in the BJP, they would have to abide by the party discipline, he said.
Katiyar said that Mulayam Singh Yadav''s attempt to form government with the Congress support would not materialise. Congress president Sonia Gandhi was not inclined to support Mulayam, he said.