Paswan promises to float party on Nov 23

Paswan promises to float party on Nov 23
R.B. SINGH

LUCKNOW, 0CT 11: The Janata Dal (United) will formally split on November 23. A new party will be floated and its name and agenda announced at a rally in Delhi that day.

Announcing this to media persons here today, JD(U) leader and UnionCommunications Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said his new party would continueits support to the NDA Government at the Centre. Asked how many MPs and MLAs would go with him, all he said was:``many.'' He added that if none of the 10 MPs and the MLAs joined his party, his decision to float a new party was final, he said.

Flanked by the two party ministers in the Ram Prakash Gupta government, Rajaram Pandey and Rampal Rajbanshi, Paswan lashed out at JD(U) president Sharad Yadav for not taking interest in strengthening the party. He said:``I can no longer remain in a sinking ship.''

How inactive the party leadership was could be guaged from the fact that not a single rally had been organised since the party was formed, Paswan said, adding:``The party's unit has not been properly constituted even in one state.''

He said the party which gave three Prime Ministers to the country, V.P. Singh, Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral, was no more a national party. Sharad Yadav should resign as party president, owning responsibility for the party'scondition, he said.

Paswan said he had decided to float a new party way back in July 1999. But Ram Krishna Hegde and George Fernandes advised him against this.``I waited with the hope that Sharad Yadav will be forced to resign as the party chief and things will improve,''he said . But nothing happened and the party was reduced to a regional party, he added.

On his support to the BJP-led Government, Paswan said it was not a BJP government. There was nothing wrong in supporting the NDA Government which had excluded the controversial issues like the Ram Temple, Article 370 and Unified Civil Code from its agenda. Vajpayee had done for the Dalits which the United Front and the National Front Governments could not, he said.It was the Vajpayee Government which provided for reservation for SCs\STs inpromotions, made a move to lift ceiling of 50 per cent in reservation andalso raised the SC/ST population percentage from 22 to 24.8 per cent by including more castes in these categories, he said.

The NDA Government was bringing up a Bill in the next session to reserveseats in Parliament and Assemblies for SCs and STs according to theirpopulation, he added.