RLM asks PM to quit; LS adjourned
Congress leads RS walkout
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — The first day of the winter session of the Lok Sabha began on a heated note today with agitated members of the Rashtriya Janata Dal-Samajwadi combine, the Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha, demanding govern-ment’s resignation over its failure to contain prices of essential commodities and forcing adjournment of the House for the day without transaction of business. The Opposition staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha.

Members of the RLM were on their feet soon after the House went through the ritual obituary references and raised slogans, demanding Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s resignation.

Even as the Speaker, Mr G M C Balayogi, called the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Sharad Pawar, to speak, the members of the RJD-SP combine rushed into the well of the House and started raising slogans against the government.

Mr Pawar was heard saying he had given a notice seeking suspension of question hour and had pressed for a discussion on the abnormal rise in prices.

A sombre BJP, led by the Prime Minister, the Home Minister, Mr L K Advani, and other Cabinet members remained mute spectators as members of the RLM raised slogans like "Vajpayee istipha do" (Vajpayee resign). They said the BJP-led coalition had no moral justification for remaining in office after the people had voted against it in the just concluded poll.

After 25 minutes of noisy scenes and Speaker’s appeal to the members to maintain order, Mr Balayogi adjourned the House till 1400 hours.

When the House reassembled, the RLM members again trooped into the well of the House amidst sloganeering. They refused to heed to the Speaker’s appeal for restoration of decorum in the House. Congress members, however, remained silent.

Some members of the BJP tried to counter the RLM onslaught by trading counter-charges but senior leaders like Mr L K Advani and Mr Murli Manohar Joshi restrained them.

The Speaker tried to persuade the agitated members to return to their seats, saying that the House was ready to discuss price rise and other important issues as demanded by several members.

At one stage he chided the Opposition, saying that it was not the proper way to raise any matter. When the House was willing to discuss the issue threadbare, he said he did not understand the reason behind such an act.

The president of the RLM, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, said there was no question of retreat on the price issue and the government should quit. He said apart from the price rise issue, there were many issues which needed to be raised in the House.

The Speaker finally adjourned the House for the day.

Outgoing Delhi Chief Minister Sushma Swaraj, who resigned as Information and Broadcasting Minister but retained her Lok Sabha seat, was conspicuous by her absence.

Vajpayee says ‘no’
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Assured of the support of the allies to the BJP-led coalition government, the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, today rejected the Opposition’s demand for the resignation of his government in the wake of the BJP’s defeat in the recently held assembly elections in Delhi, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M.L. Khurana told mediapersons that partners in the BJP-led alliance had reiterated support at a meeting of the allies which was convened by the Prime Minister. The meeting was also attended by representatives of the AIADMK. The Minister of Law and Justice, Mr Thambi Durai, had met Mr Vajpayee twice since yesterday, he said.

Mr Khurana said the Prime Minister while rejecting the Opposition’s demand for the resignation of his government pointed out that there was no such precedent when a ruling party at the Centre had resigned because of poor performance in assembly elections.

In 1993 when the Congress was in power at the Centre, the party had lost assembly elections in several states, including Delhi and Rajasthan, but the minority government had continued, Mr Vajpayee argued.

Accepting the election results, the Prime Minister said the party should introspect to determine reasons for its defeat. "We should not feel disappointed but try to take corrective measures", he said adding that the party had won all six Lok Sabha byelections in the past eight months. This indicated that the people had not rejected the Central Government policies and programmes, he asserted.

The Prime Minister gave a detailed account of the initiatives taken by the government to control prices. A long-term plan was to set a chain of cold storages for preservation of perishable commodities. Both private and public sectors would be involved in this effort.

Mr Vajpayee said farmers should get remunerative prices even in case of a good crop. At the same time, it should be ensured that commodities were made available to consumers at reasonable prices even if crops failed due to natural calamities.

The Prime Minister said the Centre would come down heavily on hoarders. The Centre, he said, would bring a Bill to strengthen the Essential Commodities Act during this session. Meanwhile, the states could initiate action against hoarders under various existing laws.

Gehlot to head Rajasthan govt
Sonia decides leadership issue

JAIPUR, Nov 30 (PTI) — The Rajasthan Congress President, Mr Ashok Gehlot, who led the party to its most spectacular victory in assembly elections, will be the state's new Chief Minister.

Mr Gehlot (47) was today elected Leader of the Congress Legislature Party paving the way for his becoming the state's youngest Chief Minister following the approval by Congress President Sonia Gandhi who was authorised to take a decision on this.

Mr Gehlot is not a member of the Assembly and represents Jodhpur in the Lok Sabha.

The day saw a flurry of activities with the 150-strong Congress Legislative Party meeting twice.

The first sitting of CLP in the morning authorised the party President Sonia Gandhi to decide on the CLP leader and obviously receiving the green signal from Delhi, the party's 150 newly-elected legislators met in the afternoon to formally elect Mr Gehlot as the new leader.

Ahead of CLP sessions, a team of observers deputed by the Congress high command, met the legislators individually in the morning to ascertain their views on the choice of the CLP leader.

Meanwhile, AICC central observer Madhavrao Scindia told reporters here that the Congress would meet Governor Justice N.L. Tiberewal tonight to stake claim to form new government.

The date and time for the swearing-in of the new ministry would be announced as soon as the Governor invites Mr Gehlot, he added.

Earlier in the day former Rajasthan Chief Minister Shiv Charan Mathur said the choice of the Congress Legislature Party leader in Rajasthan should be left to the party high command.

"I am of the view that the matter should be left to the high command", Mathur told reporters here a few hours before the start of the scheduled CLP meeting.

Asked about his reported statement that the leader of the CLP should be elected from among the legislators, Mr Mathur said that was the normal practice.

He, however, said there was no bar on persons other than members of Legislative Assembly contesting for the CLP leadership.

State Mahila Congress Chief Prabha Thakur also felt that the leadership issue should be left to the party high command.

Mr Gehlot will be the 11th Chief Minister of Rajasthan.

For the soft-spoken and suave Gehlot, the honour comes as reward for painstaking efforts to revive the fortunes of Congress as the Pradesh Congress Chief.

Born on May 3, 1951, in Jodhpur in western Rajasthan, Mr Gehlot has been returned to the Lok Sabha from his native city since 1980 barring 1989 poll when he lost to Jaswant Singh, now the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.

Although he never contested any assembly election, he had a brief stint as Home Minister in the Shiv Charan Mathur Cabinet for a few months before the 1990 elections.

He served as Deputy Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation in the Indira Gandhi government in 1982 and as Deputy Minister for Sports in the Rajiv Gandhi ministry in 1984. He was again made Minister of State for Textile with independent charge in 1991 in the Narasimha Rao government.

He had been serving as the Pradesh Congress Chief for the second term since 1994. He occupied the PCC Chief’s post from 1985 to 1989 too.

Mr Gehlot was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1980 and again in 1984.

After tasting his first electoral defeat in 1989, he sprang back to win successive elections in 1991, 1996 and 1998.

Born in a middle class family, Mr Gehlot began his political life by joining National Students Union of India (NSUI) heading its state unit from 1979 to 1983.

He became general secretary of the Jodhpur District Congress Committee in 1977 and its chief in 1979.

Son of a noted magician and social worker Laxman Singh Gehlot, he did postgraduation and obtained a degree in Law from Jodhpur University.

Swearing-in today

JAIPUR, Nov 30 (PTI) — Newly elected Congress Legislative Party leader Ashok Gehlot will be sworn in as Rajasthan Chief Minister tomorrow.

Governor N.L. Tiberwal will administer the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Gehlot at a special function at 11.30 am Raj Bhavan sources said tonight.