bjp-l-digest Thursday, July 31 1997 Volume 01 : Number 347
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News, Opinion, Analysis and Publications Digest
Today's Topics
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Bihar gave enough fodder for BJP motion in parliament
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Date: July 30, 1997
Source: Economic TImes
Bihar gives enough fodder for BJP cannons; motion rejected
Our Political Bureau
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NEW DELHI 29 JULY
THE GOVERNMENT today once again came in for an intense
attack from the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies over
the Bihar issue. At the end of the nine-hour discussion
marked by uproarious scenes and flashes of temper, the
Opposition refused to withdraw its charge of inaction and
passivity against the Centre. It, however, did not press
for a voting on the motion before it was rejected by the
House.
Discussion in the House today on the Bihar issue saw Mr
George Fernandes and Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee launching a
sharp attack on the Centre. Mr Fernandes, who spoke for
almost an hour, made out a strong case for Central
intervention. He said the Centre, in case it was reluctant
to use Article 356, could still get rid of the RJD
government by taking recourse to other provisions in the
Constitution. The Samata Party leader cited the findings of
the Comptroller and Auditor General as well as the reports
of the Planning Commission to argue that a state of total
financial anarchy prevailed in the RJD-ruled state. His
contention was that the brazen violation of even the basic
norms of financial discipline by the Bihar government since
Mr Yadav took over as the chief minister obliged the Centre
to use the powers conferred on it by Articles 160 and 360
to declare financial emergency.
Mr Fernandes was at his scathing best and employed his
inquisitorial skills in full seeking to riddle holes in the
defence put up by the prime minister.
Mr Vajpayee had only to build on the foundation already
laid by his ally, Mr Fernandes. And he managed to do a
convincing job of that after Mr Indrajit Gupta, Union home
minister had tried to fortify the Centre against the
allegation that it has been indulgent and even encouraging
towards Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav. Taking from where the prime
minister had left off last week, Mr Gupta said that the
Centre had limited options. He said that while the
happenings in Bihar including the transition from Laloo
rule to the dispensation of Ms Rabri Devi could be faulted
on the ground of propriety, but they did not tantamount to
being unconstitutional. Just like Mr Gujral, Mr Gupta also
sought to give Centre the credit for the resignation of Mr
Yadav by leaving no escape route for him. The home
minister, who described Mr Yadav as a brave man, went on to
make a statesman-like appeal to all political parties not
to field chargesheeted persons as their candidates
Replying to the debate, Mr Vajpayee took exception to the
note of helplessness struck by the prime minister and Mr
Gupta. He started off by refuting the assertion of the home
minister that the BJP while criticising the government had
not bothered to spell out what the Centre should have done.
Mr Vajpayee said that the BJP had clearly demanded the
application of Article 356 in view of the exceptional
situation prevailing in that sate. He shifted into attack
mode quickly to fault the prime minister for taking credit
for the CBI's actions against Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav.
He reminded the House that the CBI was an autonomous
agency, suggesting that the prime minister should not have
claimed that agency functioned directly under him.
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End of bjp-l-digest V1 #347
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