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Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi
Rashid Alvi, a Bahujan Samaj Party Member of Parliament, launched a frontal attack on Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav on Tuesday, accusing him of going around with bags of money to lure legislators to form the next government in Uttar Pradesh.
"Mulayam Singh Yadav is going about with bags of money to purchase legislators and form the government in UP," Alvi told a small group of reporters in Parliament. "But I can say confidently that our legislators are united and will not fall prey to any enticement."
He said the Samajwadi Party chief had the backing of a prominent business house, which is helping him to realise his ambition of becoming chief minister of Uttar Pradesh for the third time.
"I have contempt for media reports which say that Muslim BSP legislators may break away in favour of the Samajwadi Party," he said. "This is mischievous, because our legislators are fully behind Mayawatiji."
Significantly, BSP vice-president Mayawati is still in New Delhi. An aide said she would not speak to reporters.
Observers see the fact that Mayawati is still in Delhi as proof of her confidence that her flock of 99 legislators in Uttar Pradesh will remain intact and that she has little to fear from Samajwadi Party poachers.
Asked if the BSP would be ready to form an SP-BSP government in Uttar Pradesh, Alvi replied in the affirmative. "Why should we have a problem if Mayawati is made the chief minister?" he quipped.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party politicians said that since their parliamentary board had already decided to sit in the opposition in Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati remaining in Delhi was of little consequence. "As far as we are concerned, that chapter is closed," party spokesman Sunil Shastri said.
But other BJP sources said Mayawati was unlikely to abandon her efforts to form a coalition government so easily. "Let Mulayam Singh Yadav first approach the governor," a BJP general secretary told rediff.com "Only then will political moves become more evident."
