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EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, MAY 7: Piqued with BJP's umbrage to their attempts at forming a new front comprising socialist parties, to have a pressure group within the BJP-led alliance, Samata Party leaders today developed cold feet.
``Our idea is to strengthen the BJP-led coalition and not to form a pressure group. I hope BJP will not take objection to the move aimed at consolidating the alliance at the Centre,'' party general secretary Jaya Jaitley told journalists.
She also clarified that there was no talk of forming a new Front within the existing Front to act as a pressure group saying the whole purpose was to strengthen the BJP alliance.
Jaitley dismissed suggestions that the idea was to project Samata Party president George Fernandes as a prime ministerial candidate.
She claimed that the response from alliance partners to the Samata move has so far been positive. She, however, declined to elaborate.
While Lok Shakti has welcomed the proposal, former PM Chandra Shekhar, whose Samajwadi Janata Party is not aBJP ally, termed the move as ``a step in right diretion''. Janata Dal and Samajwadi Party had refused to have any truck with Samata unless it severed ties with BJP.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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