CHANDIGARH: The supporters of Punjab Chief Minister Harcharan Singh Brar were prepared to prove their strength in the numbers game on the occasion of the rally being organized on the birthday of Congress president P.Y, Narasimha Rao at New Delhi on June 28 even as the dissidents seem to be in no mood to relent. The rally was being organized by All India Youth Congress president Maninderjit Singh Bitta and efforts are on to mobilize maximum number of people from Punjab. Bitta has invited Brar to address the rally. All the MLAs supporting the Chief Minister would attend the rally to show their strength.
The dissidents, who are demanding change in leadership, on the other hand, continue to camp in Delhi despite the advice of the party high command {o return to their state. Sources in the dissident’s camp said they were pressing the high command for seeking resignation of Brar from the leadership of the Congress Legislature Party before sending observer to Chandigarh to assess the situation.
Though Minister of State for Information and Public Relations, Partap Singh Bajwa, recently denied that the party high command had decided to depute an observer to listen to the MLAs individually. Sources said Pranab Mukerjee, who is handling the present crisis, had conceded this demand of the dissidents at a meeting with them after the departure of the Chief Minister from Delhi. Sources said the dissidents were also insisting that the high command should announce the name of the observer. Mukerjee would take up the issue of selecting the observer with Rao, it is learnt, Former Union Minister Butta Singh, one of the leaders spearheading the dissidents, had even recently booked 14 rooms at the Chandigarh Union Territory guest house in anticipation of the visit of the observer.
Sources close to Brar said the Congress president had assured him that the status quo would be maintained and there was no question of changing him. He also told Brar that his services would also be utilized in the forthcoming Uttar Pradesh elections. Brar looked confident and resumed normal functioning. These sources said Brar was in no mood to offer the post of Deputy Chief Minister to the dissidents’ camp as a compromise formula.
Meanwhile, Bajwa also denied that the high command had directed the Chief Minister to remove the MLAs recently appointed as chairman of various boards and corporations. He also described as misleading that Brar had been directed to shelve the panel of office bearers of the Congress Legislature Party which has recently been reconstituted. He said the Chief Minister had clarified his position in Delhi and the high command was fully satisfied that there was no need of appointing an observer; He claimed Brar enjoyed full confidence and support in the CLP.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 3, 1996
