UF sits on 'time-bomb'
Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi
A smouldering crisis threatens the United Front as several Congress leaders sense the Inder Kumar Gujral government's ''designs'' to delay tabling the Jain Commission report on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's psychological warfare, however, seems to be stifling a rebellion in the Congress, with senior party leaders dropping veiled threats and ''fond hopes''.
Addressing the media on Tuesday, senior Congress Working Committee member Arjun Singh hoped that the Gujral government will not wriggle out of its commitment to table the Jain Commission report on the opening day of the winter session of Parliament on November 19.
Referring to Union Home Minister Indrajit Gupta's ''hints'' that the tabling of the report will be ''delayed'', Arjun Singh drew attention to the CPI leader's written commitment to the Congress that the report would be tabled on November 19.
According to Arjun Singh, the UF government's ''hints'' barely 10 days before the commencement of the winter session provided cause for concern.
Singh also released copies of the letter written by party
vice-president Jitendra Prasada to the home minister and the
latter's reply. In his letter, Prasada had virtually warned
the home minister that if the UF government did not accede to
the Congress demand on tabling the report, the party high command may be forced ''to take some drastic steps''.
In his reply to Prasada's letter, Gupta had stressed that
''there is no need, in my opinion, for you to threaten the
government'' and that ''there is no possibility of such a contingency''.
Asked whether the Congress would withdraw support to the Gujral
government if the latter backtracked on its promise, Arjun Singh said the CWC would take a decision taking into consideration the totality
of the present circumstances.
Asked why the Congress was anxious about the Commission's interim report, Arjun Singh said, ''Legally there was no difference between the interim and the final reports.''
Another senior Congress leader K Karunakaran, too, contended that
no party member would compromise on the Jain Commission report, indicating that the UF government was sitting on a time-bomb.
RELATED REPORT:
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