Infuriated with the decision, which was seconded by the Uttar Pradesh Government last week, the two Akali Dal leaders had on Friday threatened to withdraw their party's support to the Vajpayee Government if it went ahead with its decision on Udham Singh Nagar.

Following this, Vajpayee yesterday invited the two Shiromani Akali Dal leaders to the Capital in order to break the deadlock over the issue. ``Badal and Tohra have accepted the Prime Minister's invitation and will be reaching New Delhi on Wednesday to begin their discussion on the Udham Singh Nagar imbroglio,'' Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Madan Lal Khurana told reporters today.

Observing that BJP and AkaliDal were ``natural allies,'' he exuded confidence that the crisis over the Udham Singh Nagar issue, which has plagued the ruling alliance for quite some time now, would be resolved in the meeting. Asked whether the Government had any formula, he replied: ``There is a ray of hope, and I am sure something will emerge out of the meeting.''

Meanwhile, Tohra today told a private TV news programme that his party would ``not topple the Vajpayee Government but would only protest.''

With the crisis looming large over his Government, Vajpayee yesterday initiated damage-control measures. As part of this exercise, he last night spoke over telephone to Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee who was in the Capital on her way to New York to attend the UN General Assembly session. ``She told the Prime Minister that she had not spoken to any Akali Dal leader to offer her party's support over the Udham Singh Nagar issue,'' Khurana pointed out.