UP ELECTIONS

Sunita Aron on UP Elections

"No winners all losers" - what a tragic final (semi) of the intense political battle fought vigorously in Uttar Pradesh by all the players.

After a month-long gigantic exercise, the State is back under the President's rule. Newly-elected MLAs disgusted with their leaders' failure to restore political democracy in the State have started leaving the State Capital for their homes to thank their electorate, who sent them to the Vidhan Sabha but denied a clear mandate to any party. After all they have been deprived of both the roles of a hero as well as a villain as they would neither occupy the treasury benches nor sit in the opposition.

In fact, political activity has come to a grinding halt. Mulayam Singh Yadav may be a contented man because he foiled the plans of installing Mayawati Government in Uttar Pradesh. He did not allow even the single largest party BJP to be invited. But he failed in forming his own Government, he failed in breaking the Congress-BSP alliance, and he failed in pushing the BSP into the BJP's camp.

Politically, nothing could have suited him more than the BSP joining hands with the BJP. By this, Kanshi Ram and Mayawati would have lost all their credibility in the eye of the minorities they have been trying to win over from SP's bid.

Simultaneously, the Congress would have been forced to sever ties with the BSP and then with a strength of 33 legislators, Congress would have had no option but to support Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Government, even if for the purpose of defeating the BJP on the floor of the House.

The State Congress chief is confident that the secular- forces would be forced to support Mayawati Government here. According to him, there was no need for the Governor to recommend the dissolution of the State Assembly as an acceptable Government would be formed in near future under the leadership of Mayawati. According to him, Mulayam Singh Yadav had failed in his main game plan of breaking Congress-BSP alliance Now perhaps wisdom would prevail on him and under the pressure of the secular forces and voters he would accept Mayawati. But he admits that dalals armed with money and muscle power were quite active."

What has the Congress achieved so far, the effort to win over Dalits was made by the BJP also, when it had propped up Mayawati Government.

But Dalits of UP had only rallied around the BSP. As for Kanshi Ram and Mayawati, nothing could satisfy more than the fall of the UF Government in Delhi, of which Mulayam Singh Yadav's SP is a constituent.

Mayawati had described United Front as a combination of ideology and policy-less parties who connive with the BJP for their political advantage. She had further said that an effort is being made to capture power in the State through money, muscle and mafia power, which the Dalits and downtrodden of the State would not allow.

However, she is faced with the problem of keeping her MLAs intact. With a strength of 67, they are most vulnerable. Both BJP and SP have an eye on them as it would be easier to engineer defection in BSP without inviting the provisions of the anti-defection law.

Mulayam Singh Yadav camp is trying to win over one dozen Muslims and two dozen backward legislators. BJP is trying their luck on nine uppercaste legislators.

As for the BJP, Kalyan Singh had lost the battle when their tally in the 425-seat State assembly had come to an end at 174 only.

Their game plan was foiled by the Governor; Romesh Bhandari who insisted on being convinced of majority support before an invitation was extended to them.

In all, there were three major contenders for the Chief Ministers post Kalyan Singh, Mayawati and Mulayam Singh Yadav. All of them, have suffered political losses. None have made any major political gains in the UP battle.

(Sources The Hindustan Times, 19 October, 1996)

P.K. Roy on the Results of UP Elections

Uttar Pradesh is once again condemned to wallow in the quagmire of political instability, economic backslide, rising graph of social and communal hostility with its bearing on the law-and-order scenario. The hope that the electorate would opt for a stable Government to last full five years, a pre-requisite to bring UP back on the rails of development, has been belied.

With their preference running along caste lines more acutely now than ever before and the cynicism and apathy among the literate urban and semi-urban segments, the State has given a fractious verdict, same as in 1993. Given the intense distrust bordering on hostility between the three claimants for the Chief Minister's office, it is unlikely that coming together of any two combinations would ensure a stable Government, owing to inner contradictions, ego problems and eagerness to see that the beneficiary does not dig in to strike deep roots politically at the expense of the other.

(Source: The Hindu, 14 October, 1956)