Oppn seeks Akhilesh floor test

UNDER FIRE BJP says SP govt has lost majority in House; BSP, Cong say governance will take a hit in the state

LUCKNOW: Taking advantage of the ongoing internal turmoil in the Samajwadi Party (SP), Opposition parties on Sunday launched a scathing attack against the ruling party in Uttar Pradesh.

While the BJP demanded a floor test, saying the government had lost its majority, the BSP and Congress said the infighting had taken a toll on governance.

“This government is now reduced to a minority and hence should not be allowed to take any policy decisions until it is able to prove its majority on the floor of the assembly,” UP BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya said.

BSP general secretary Satish Mishra said people would teach the SP a lesson in the assembly elections early next year. “There is no governance. The law and order situation has taken a nosedive and people are fed up of this family feud,” said Mishra, addressing a public rally in eastern UP.

Alleging that the state’s development had taken a hit in the ‘chacha-bhatija’ feud, Maurya said, “Whether the majority lawmakers are with the chief minister or Shivpal can only be proved on the floor of the assembly. That’s why a floor test is important now.”

Targeting the chief minister, he said, “By removing some of his ministers, some of whom were accused of being involved in scams, the CM has tried to indicate that he stands for clean governance. But then why did he tolerate these ministers for so long? In fact, there are still several ministers in his government who face serious charges. Why has Akhileshji been protecting them? The reality is that all this infighting is to share the loot money.”

Meanwhile, the Congress said “it is the prerogative of the state’s chief minister to either sack or appoint ministers”.

“This is purely an internal matter. Congress has the tradition of not interfering in the internal affairs of any party. In the interest of UP, they should settle the fight within their own party,” Congress spokesperson Tom Vadakkan said.

“This is a matter which has to be decided internally. We hope that they set their house in order and conduct fair elections in the state,” he added.

On being asked about Ramgopal Yadav, who was expelled from the SP, Vadakkan said, “We are not taking sides. Let them settle the matter internally.”

Ramgopal was said to be close to Akhilesh and his expulsion from the party was announced by Shivpal Yadav, who heads the SP’s state unit. He was sacked from the cabinet on Sunday morning.

“It wouldn’t be appropriate for any party to interfere. We’ll speak if it affects the people of Uttar Pradesh,” Vadakkan said.

Satyadeo Tripathi, chairman of the communication department of UP Congress, said, “The government is in a limbo. The power tussle of the past 10 days has affected administrative functioning and people’s work is not getting done.”

› This government is now reduced to a minority and hence, should not be allowed to take any policy decisions until it is able to prove its majority on the floor of the assembly. KESHAV PRASAD MAURYA, Uttar Pradesh BJP chief