The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Monday, April 30, 2001,
Chandigarh, India

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Rabri govt’s fall imminent, says Paswan
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 29
Foreseeing a fall in the Rabri Devi regime in Bihar, the Lok Janshakti Party, a ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre, today said that the party was in touch with expelled Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Ranjan Yadav to form an alternative government in the state.

“Ranjan Yadav’s claim for chief ministership will be rightful and we will extend full support to him to form an alternative government,” Lok Shakti President and Union Minister for Communications, Mr Ram Vilas Paswan told newspersons here today.

Terming the split in the RJD as a reflection of discontent among the rank and file of the party, Mr Paswan said it was a manifestation of its leaders’ “discontent with the Rabri Devi administration and high handedness of Mr Laloo Yadav who has been surviving on the politics of caste”.

Mr Paswan, however, did not see a possibility of breakaway faction of the RJD to merge with his party in the immediate future.

The breakaway group today said it would mobilise anti-Laloo Yadav forces to topple the Rabri Devi government in Bihar “very soon” and claimed that the NDA had extended “unconditional support” to this effort.

Breakaway faction RJD (Democratic) spokesman Anwarul Haq, MP, told reporters here that his group, was in touch with all “like-minded” parties to muster their support for cobbling an alternative government in the state.

Replying to questions, he said the 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, too, would split soon and claimed that seven of them were with the breakaway group leader Ranjan Yadav.

“We will meet in a day or two and finalise the split in the upper house,” rebel MPs Kumkum Rai and Dhamma Viriyo, who were also present at the press conference, said.

The rebels claimed that 60 out of 115 RJD MLAs did not attend the RJD National Executive meeting in Patna yesterday and described them as supporters of Ranjan Yadav. PTI

Laloo rules out split, defers poll

Patna, April 29
In a bid to quell dissidence, the two-day RJD National Executive meeting today resolved to set up a disciplinary committee and defer organisational poll as the combative party supremo, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, ruled out a split in the RJD Legislature Party in the wake of the expulsion of rebel leaders.

“The entire legislature party stands like a rock behind the leadership of the Laloo-Rabri duo,” RJD spokesman Shivanand Tiwari told mediapersons on conclusion of the meeting.

Ruling out the possibility of a split in the RJD Legislature Party, the RJD President claimed that not a single RJD MLA would side with the expelled RJD Rajya Sabha member, Mr Ranjan Prasad Yadav.

Mr Tiwari said the meeting unanimously endorsed the expulsion of Mr Ranjan Yadav, Lok Sabha member Nagmani and Rajya Sabha member Bhante Dhamma Biriyo from the party for six years.

The executive body also endorsed Mr Laloo Prasad’s action of removing Mr Ranjan Yadav from the posts of the party’s national Working President and the Leader of the RJD group in the Rajya Sabha, besides removal of Mr Nagmani from the post of party’s General Secretary.

Mr Tiwari said the meeting decided to defer the organisational poll from July to October this year in order to complete formalities for the poll. The resolution had been forwarded to the Election Commission. PTI