SC BRINGS ALL UNDER ONE ROOF

ADVERSITY IS a great adhesive and Uttar Pradesh has just proved it. The BJP, BSP, SP and even the Congress may rarely see eye to eye but the recent SC verdict ordering eviction of former chief ministers from their palatial government bungalows has brought all these parties on the same page.

Of the six former chief ministers directly affected by the SC verdict, two belong to the SP ( Mulayam Singh and Akhilesh Yadav), two to the BJP ( Kalyan Singh and Rajnath Singh), one to the BSP ( Mayawati) and one is a former Congress leader ( N. D. Tiwari).

Though they may not say it publicly but all these parties and their leaders feel that the SC verdict is unjustified. After all, which party would like to let go of palatial bungalows in the heart of the state capital and that too, at a paltry rent?

The BJP is particularly worried because it feels that if the SC verdict is not countered, it could later be made applicable to former Prime Ministers and former Presidents.

The Congress is worried about the accommodation given to its top party leadership.

Ms Mayawati, on the other hand, is paranoid about her security — rather, lack of it — if she is asked to move out of her sprawling bungalow that is fitted with bullet proof window panes. Mulayam Singh and Akhilesh Yadav feel that leaving their bungalows would rob them of their political stature. All these parties are now under one roof and want to find a way to counter the SC ruling.