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Coalition allies skirt contentious issues, focus on price rise

The co-ordination committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government expressed grave concern at the skyrocketing prices of essential commodities, particularly onions, but avoided discussing the issue of imposing President's rule in Bihar or the postponement of the Cabinet's expansion.

The committee was meeting after a three-month hiatus.

Warring allies in the coalition joined hands to berate the government for the hardships caused to the common man by the unchecked rise in prices of various commodities and directed it to initiate effective measures on a war footing to tackle the situation.

In another significant step, the meeting directed the government to introduce in the winter session of Parliament a bill to restore to the states the right to make reservations in excess of the 51 per cent ceiling set by the Supreme Court.

Earlier, All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo Jayalalitha Jayaram had hosted a tea party for all the alliance partners, including the BJP, at a five-star hotel. Barring the Marumalarchi DMK, all the allies attended the get-together that lasted an hour.

Jaswant Singh, outgoing convener of the committee, said the two-hour meeting also decided to appoint a committee of experts to examine the possibility of granting all official languages the status of national languages.

Though the ruling partners will make their own recommendations for membership of the committee, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will set it up.

In another decision, the co-ordination committee asked the government to take corrective steps with the Supreme Court which has restrained the movement of forest produce out of the forests of the North-East.

The matter of difficulties being faced by the people in the North-East was raised by BJP president Shashikant 'Kushabhau' Thakre.

The allies expressed serious concern at the growing activities of the Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence in different parts of the country and asked the government to take effective counter-measures.

The allies felt the government had managed the international situation "adequately and satisfactorily" in the post-Pokhran period. In this connection, Jaswant Singh gave a detailed account of his talks with leaders from the United States, United Kingdom, France, China and Japan.

The partners also took serious note of media reports on international terrorist Osama bin Laden's involvement in the Kashmir Valley and his secret visit to Hyderabad. Jayalalitha raised the issue and demanded an inquiry.

The partners also demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the Coimbatore bomb blasts.

Trinamool Congress leader Ajit Panja and Biju Janata Dal president Navin Patnaik raised health issues and highlighted the incidence of malignant malaria in Orissa, West Bengal, and the North-East.

Shiromani Akali Dal president Parkash Singh Badal and Jayalalitha highlighted the plight of farmers and wanted the government to ensure remunerative prices for their produce and introduce effective crop insurance.

Jaswant Singh said the allies expressed satisfaction at the performance of the six-month-old government and decided to meet once every month. A formal office with adequate staff and other facilities will be established shortly for the meetings.

At Singh's request, the committee relieved him of the convener's post since he is pre-occupied with other assignments and appointed George Fernandes as the new convener.

Among those who participated in the meeting were: Prime Minister Vajpayee, Jayalalitha, Patnaik, Surjit Singh Barnala (SAD), Madhukar Sarpotdar (Shiv Sena), Dr S Ramadoss (Pattali Makkal Katchi), Fernandes (Samata), Gingee Ramachandran (MDMK), Vazhapady K Ramamurthy (Tamil Nadu Rajiv Congress), Bansi Lal (Haryana Vikas Party), Ajit Kumar Panja, L K Advani, Pramod Mahajan, Thakre, and Badal.

UNI

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