NEW DELHI: On a day former Kerala Governor and Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit took back her earlier comment that she was in support of the idea of giving BJP a chance and AAP leader Manish Sisodia dangled the threat of more revelations of horse trading, there was little from the Lieutenant Governor to indicate which way the wind was blowing.
Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung is busy drafting a formal letter as suggested by the Supreme Court to send to the President of India.
On September 4 Jung wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee stating: “I shall be grateful if the Honourable President of India grants approval to invite the Bharatiya Janata Party, that is even today the single largest party in the Legislature, to seek their interest in forming the government (MLA strength of all the parties, as well as independents, is attached). Should the BJP agree, I would ask them to demonstrate their strength to form stable government on the Floor of the House within a stipulated time frame possibly, one week.”
The apex court suggested the Lieutenant Governor correct the language of the letter he has sent to the President. Interestingly, Jung, when he invited AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal to from government in Delhi last year, had written: “The Bharatiya Janata party along with its alliance partner, the Shiromani Akali Dal, that emerged as the single largest pre-poll alliance has declined to from the Government. As the leader of the second largest party, I invite you to Raj Niwas… to explore possibilities of forming the Governed in Delhi.”
With allegation of promoting horse trading levelled by AAP party leaders, Jung is cautious.
Smarting under the initial setback of its leader caught on camera allegedly asking an AAP MLA to help it form the government, the BJP hopes have been revived with ABVP winning Delhi University students’ elections. The party’s central leadership is still wary of any taint allegations sticking if it manages to form the government with turncoats of other parties extending covert support. BJP chief Amit Shah had recently said the BJP was ready to form the government in Delhi if it received above-board support from MLAs from other parties. After the sting scandal, there is clear indication from Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the state unit should go for polls rather than attempt to from government in Delhi.
BJP’s energies are currently divided in two states—Haryana and Maharashtra—which are going to polls on October 15. So any charges of wrongdoing while forming the government in Delhi are likely to impact voter sentiments in these states. BJP currently has 29 MLAs and needs support of five more MLAs as the overall Assembly strength has been reduced to 67 from 70.
Maintaining an ambivalent stance Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhaya told The Sunday Standard they will “critically analyse the situation once they get an invite from the LG. We are ready to elections anytime, but will think if we are ready to form government.”
Dismissing the issue of electing a leader of the legislative party was not a big matter. It can be done within an hour of getting LG’s invite.
Sources said as Pitrapaksh was on till September 24, no political move will be made till then. As the Supreme Court has set October 29 as the next date of hearing on Delhi Assembly, by then the results of elections to Haryana and Maharashtra would have come (October 19), and Diwali would have been over (October 23). A section of party leaders is also of the view the party should go for February elections as by then it would have consolidated its position. Why live with a taint, when they can honourably win an election, was the refrain of some.
In the meantime, After Dikshit commented that she was in support of giving BJP a chance to from government, infighting has started within the party with MLAs divided over this. With Dikshit back in Delhi, state leader Arvinder Singh Lovely fears that Dikshit might make inroads in Delhi politics and take away the credit for all hard work.