Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav’s renewed pitch for a Third Front is seeing the Congress responding with a mix of aggression and caution even as the NDA trashed it outright.
The Congress on Monday termed Mulayam’s talk of a Third Front as the most enduring mirage of Indian politics about which it is not bothered.
However, SP leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav’s statement about possibility of elections in October and Mulayam and his brother Ram Gopal consistently praising NDA’s rule and BJP leaders Atal Bihari Vajpayee and lK Advani is a cause of worry for the ruling party despite its brave assertions that the UPA Government is stable. More so, since one of its UPA allies NCP appeared to be siding with the SP leader by calling for widening the alliance.
Nevertheless, the BJP and JD(U) too have dismissed the idea of Third Front as a non-starter saying that it is always remembered for wrong reasons.
Aware of the UPA Government’s dependence on support of 22 SP MPs for survival, the Congress refrained from criticising Mulayam despite his public praise of NDA and its leaders. It termed Mulayam’s remarks as his personal opinion but not before seeking to counter him by reminding him about the Gujarat riots and Babri Masjid demolition.
In an indirect offensive, Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi suddenly waved the Women Reservation Bill asserting that the Government is committed to bring it in the Budget Session despite being well aware that Mulayam is staunchly opposed to it. The Congress ploy is that if Mulayam withdraws support in near future as indicated by Akhilesh, the Government could claim that it made a sacrifice for the cause of women.
Also, the Congress hopes that Trinamool Congress’ Mamata Banerjee, who faced a major embarrassment when Mulayam ditched her at the last moment during presidential elections, could revive her support to the UPA avenge the humiliation. The Congress’ optimisim follows Mamata’s surprise support to the Government on the Sri lankan Tamil issue.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari countered Mulayam’s idea saying that if one looks at the history of the past 20 years, “The reality is that a Third front or a Fourth Front or a Fifth Front has been the most enduring mirage of Indian politics”. He asserted that the UPA Government is completely stable.
And Alvi said: “I do not think there is any possibility of any Third Front. History is witness, whenever the Third Front came into existence; it has collapsed for the sake of power. People of the country do not trust any such kind of Third Front.”
Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh also dismissed Mulayam’s call to like minded parties which have common goal to achieve social change to come together as in Maharashtra, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. He said the idea is not new and the party is not “bothered.”
For his part, BJP leader Balbir Punj said Third or Fourth Front will continue to be in news for “wrong reasons” but it will be a “non-starter”. “I don’t think any such coalition will come up.”
NDA ally JD(U) leader Devesh Chnadra Thakur said that though coalition era will continue, there is no change of a third front.
However, NCP general secretary DP Tripathi said that era of coalition Government has begun. Different parties with common understanding and a programme will come together to form the Government and political formation. About SP president Mulayam Singh’s offer to NCP to join the ‘third front’, Tripathi said NCP wanted other parties to come together in UPA
He said that if the Congress-led UPA broadens its network of partners by including Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK and Odisha Chief Minister Biju Patnaik’s BJD, it will become a larger secular front.