Akali Dal defers support decision
Talks with PM today on Udham Singh Nagar
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 6 — With a meeting between the Prime Minister and the Akali leaders on Udham Singh Nagar scheduled to be held in New Delhi on Wednesday, the meeting of the Working Committee of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) held at Punjab Bhavan today became irrelevant.

The Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, told newsmen after a three-hour close-door meeting that the Working Committee would be summoned again after the talks with the Prime Minister tomorrow, scheduled for around 4 p.m. Nevertheless, the occasion was used by the Akali leaders to appraise the members of the Working Committee about the background of the issue involved. The briefing was given by the SGPC President, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra.

The SAD President while talking to newsmen, however, maintained that the meeting discussed ways and means to "strengthen" the organisational wing of the party, while, a final decision on the stand the party would ultimately take in the light of the Political Affairs Committee's decision on "withdrawal of support" to the BJP Government in New Delhi was deferred.

Both, Mr Parkash Singh and Mr Gurcharan Singh, did not answer speculative or hypothetical questions like if they saw any change in the attitude of the Prime Minister who has post haste invited the Akalis for talks. Those who would meet the Prime Minister are Mr Parkash Singh, Mr Gurcharan Singh and Mr Surjit Singh Barnala. The leaders vehemently denied that the Akalis would bargain with the BJP on Udham Singh Nagar in terms of getting a respectable number of seats in the states going to the polls in November. "The two issues are delinked. The real issue is Udham Singh Nagar", they said.

In fact the memorandum submitted by the SGPC chief to the Prime Minister sometime back would also be part of the discussion the two sides would hold tomorrow. In fact, as Mr Gurcharan Singh said "all issues related to Punjab and its problems will be taken up".

The SAD leaders reiterated their known stand on the Udham Singh Nagar issue and said nothing ought to be done against wishes of the people in a democracy, where public opinion mattered. The Akalis were hopeful of a positive outcome of the talks. They said there was no demand for a "deadline" by which the issue was to be resolved. "We talk straight and right, no bargaining or ambiguity in what we say", remarked Mr Parkash Singh. He also chided the Congress which was divided on the issue of Udham Singh Nagar.

Today's meeting of the 51-member Working Committee converted itself into a grievances meeting. It was held after more than a year's gap. Therefore, members of the committee, who included Ministers, MLAs, district Presidents, members of the SGPC etc took the opportunity to lambast the government for its "non-performance" and the "poor" image it had in the eyes of the people.

The indictment of the SAD-BJP Government and the neglect of the party cadre, rampant corruption, nepotism, favouritism and an unresponsive bureaucracy and arrogant posture of Ministers came under attack by members at the meeting. Insiders told TNS that for most of the time, rather throughout the meeting, Mr Parkash Singh was at the listening end only. He did not utter a word.

The major focus of attack was the Department of Cooperation. The first shots were fired by the district President of Hoshiarpur district, who was followed by some members of the SGPC, who quoted the "price" being extorted for appointment of "peons" and "field officers". The despondency and frustration of the workers was discernible at the meeting, sources added.

On the other hand, the defenders of the government said for want of training and understanding the frustration was more pronounced. The workers needed to be educated on how the government functioned.

Thus with the major issue of Udham Singh Nagar being deferred till after the talks tomorrow, it remains to be seen how the two sides placate their political constituencies and continue their alliance.

Prominent among those who attended the meeting included Mr Jagdev Singh Talwandi, Mr Surjan Singh Thekedar, Capt Kanwaljit Singh, Mr Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Mr Balwinder Singh Bhunder and Mr Surjit Singh Barnala.

Later the Public Relations Department officials distributed resolutions purported to have been passed at the Working Committee meeting. Those endorsed the policies and programmes of the government and listed the achievements of the past 19 months; some of them were mentioned as well. There was also a reference to the past misdeeds of the Congress and the hype it was trying to create for survival. The resolution congratulated Mr Parkash Singh for guiding the destiny of the state.

Obviously the resolution is in stark contrast to the actual airing of opinion and views by the Working Committee members, who felt jilted, on the functioning of the government.

In fact one of the senior leaders said not much was expected from Wednesday's talks.

I will do my best, says Amarinder
By Gobind Thukral
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 6 — The Punjab Congress president, Capt Amarinder Singh has assured the people of Udham Singh Nagar that he would do everything possible to see that district is excluded from the proposed Uttaranchal hill state.

While meeting a delegation of senior leaders of the Udham Singh Nagar Suraksha Samiti, Capt Amarinder Singh said that he would lead a delegation of senior Congress leaders and members of the Samiti to Mrs Sonia Gandhi. He said that Mrs Gandhi would be visiting Punjab on October 9.

The delegation consisting of the General Secretary of the Suraksha Samiti, Mr Rajesh Shukla, and members Mr Mohar Singh, Mr Daljit Singh Goraya, Subedar Chain Singh and Mr Pyara Singh who had met the Akali leaders, impressed upon Congress leaders to lend moral and political support to their demand. The delegation comprised members from all the political parties of the district.

Capt Amarinder Singh said that he has already spoken to several state Congress presidents, including those of Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. So far Haryana's Congress President, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, has assured full support. In fact, he has made a public statement also. But Capt Amarinder Singh said that leaders from West Bengal would certainly support the people of Udham Singh Nagar who did not want to join the proposed state. He said that the Congress leaders from Uttar Pradesh, however, had different perceptions. But he promised to convince them also. He said he would mobilise public opinion and hoped that the meeting with Mrs Sonia Gandhi would be helpful in many respects.

While talking to The Tribune, these leaders including Mr Shukla said that nothing short of exclusion of the district from the proposed state would be acceptable to the people of that district. Mr Shukla said that 26 amendments carried out by the Uttar Pradesh Assembly recently in the proposed Bill showed that parties were divided down the line. He said the Samajwadi Party led by Mr Mulayam Singh certainly supported the demand for the exclusion. He wondered why the President should not intervene since the proposal sent by him has been diluted by the Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

Mr Shukla and others wanted a referendum under the aegis of the Election Commission to determine the wishes of the people and deplored the attempts of the BJP Government led by Mr Kalyan Singh to launch criminal cases against the leaders in Udham Singh Nagar. Mr Goraya and Mr Mohar Singh said that the Samiti would also not accept the proposal thrown up by some leaders that other Terai areas should be included in the proposed hill state. They said there was no point in including some four or five tehsils. After all Hardwar district has been excluded. They said Punjabis, Bengalis, Muslims, Sikhs and Jats would become a hopeless minority in the new state and would never accept this position". They also chided those who thought that it was an agitation of landowners alone. "Let their be any kind of referendum of or an independent survey. Eighty-five per cent panchayats have already passed resolutions, he added.