United Front chooses Gujral as its new leader

George Iype in New Delhi

External Affairs Minister and Janata Dal leader Inder Kumar Gujral was elected as the United Front leader on Saturday.

After a day of hectic negotiations between the United Front partners, outgoing Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda announced that Gujral had emerged as the consensus candidate to head the next government.

The UF leaders will meet President Shankar Dayal Sharma on Sunday to officially stake their claim to form the next government.

The UF steering committee, which met for an hour on Saturday evening, chose Gujral to head the 13-party coalition from a list of at least five prime ministerial aspirants.

They included Tamil Maanila Congress president G K Moopanar, Samajwadi Party chief and Defence Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and Janata Dal leaders S R Bommai and Ram Vilas Paswan.

UF convenor and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu told reporters that he personally met leaders of all the 13 parties and ascertained their views on the various candidates.

"Gujral emerged as the best consensus choice," he said, adding that discussions between various leaders will continue for the formation of the next government.

Naidu said the UF partners did not discuss Gujral's election with the Congress leadership as it had just demanded Deve Gowda's replacement. "Selection of a new leader is the UF's internal affair and the Congress did not have any say in it," he added.

Soon after the announcement, Naidu went across to Kesri's 7, Purana Qila bungalow and informed him of Gujral's election. Kesri said he was "very happy" with the choice.

Many believe Gujral's election might settle the Congress-triggered political crisis only for the time being as the Congress leadership was rooting for Moopanar's candidature this past week.

The chances of Moopanar being appointed UF leader receded in the last two days after the UF constituents were sharply divided into pro-Deve Gowda and anti-Deve Gowda groups.

"Deve Gowda has clearly emerged the victor as he has been vehemently supporting Gujral's name," a Janata Dal leader said.

Deve Gowda's efforts succeeded when former prime minister V P Singh also pressed for Gujral's candidature.

Insiders said Moopanar lost the race to Gujral due to the machinations of the Left Front. The Left parties, which together have 53 seats in the Lok Sabha, have been behind Deve Gowda and were adamantly against the proposal to make Moopanar the prime minister.

The Left parties did not want Moopanar as he is seen to be close to Kesri as well as Sonia Gandhi, the alternate power centre within the Congress party.

The king-maker was Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet who convinced the UF partners that giving the premiership to Moopanar would be like handing over the UF government to the Congress party.

Sources said Surjeet, before he embarked for a visit to Russia on Saturday morning, had put forward a formula before Naidu. According to the formula, while Gujral could take the prime ministerial mantle from Deve Gowda, two posts of deputy prime ministers could be created to accommodate Moopanar and Mulayam Singh Yadav.

But the TMC leadership rejected the formula, saying that Moopanar's taking up the deputy prime ministership "is an insult to the party."

The TMC later decided not to participate in the next UF government, but support the government from outside. This means that Palaniappan Chidambaram will not be India's next finance minister.

UF leaders also fear that Gujral's election will be a short reprieve for the coalition government as regional parties such as the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and TMC have been let down by the pro-Deve Gowda lobby and the Left parties.

As the Congress's game plan to instal Moopanar has failed, Kesri and his supporters are again expected to pillory the Gujral-led UF government in days to come.

Gujral, 78, a Janata Dal member of the Rajya Sabha from Bihar, will be the second-oldest man after Morarji Desai to be prime minister.

. His name for the leadership was announced by Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda after the steering committee meeting.

After the meeting, United Front convenor Chandrababu Naidu rushed to Andhra Pradesh Bhavan and informed Gujral of the decision to appoint him as the new UF leader. Naidu said he could not say when Gujral will be sworn-in as the new prime minister

Gujral's selection, Naidu said, was by consensus. The steering committee meeting was attended by all the Front's top leaders. Even as the meeting was on, Gujral waited at Andhra Pradesh Bhavan.

The selection marked two days of hectic consultations when a consensus appeared elusive and the Front leadership seemed fragmented over Prime Minister Deve Gowda's successor.

The controversial issue of leadership has been clinched, National Conference leader and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah said before the UF steering committee began.

Though Front sources said Moopanar and Mulayam Singh were also in the fray, a hint of what was to come was available when Gujral was summoned to Andhra Pradesh Bhavan where frenetic discussions were on among the United Front leaders to choose the next prime minister.

Gujral who arrived at Andhra Pradesh Bhavan about 1800 hours IST, told the assembled journalists, "I am here because I have been called here."

Naidu began his consultations early on Saturday morning, with meetings with West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu at Bangla Bhavan and Moopanar at Andhra Pradesh Bhavan.

He later met Mulayam Singh at Andhra Pradesh Bhavan to ascertain his views on Prime Minister Deve Gowda's successor.

Consultations reached a feverish pitch around noon as the Front seemed determined on selecting its leader by the evening to form a new government by Sunday.

The Front has already announced its plan to form the government before the special session of Parliament beginning on Monday, April 21.

Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta and Basu also met to evolve a formula for a consensus on the leadership issue.

Mulayam Singh also met Mahanta, his third meeting with the Asom Gana Parishad leader in the past few days.

Mahanta is committed to UF unity. If there is a contest for the leadership, he had said the Front's unity might be disrupted. Hence, all efforts should be made to preserve the Front's unity, AGP sources said.

Sources said Moopanar, who at one stage was the front runner, slipped in the race mainly on account of stiff opposition to his candidature by the Left parties.

On the other hand, Bommai, who was not perceived as a serious candidate till Friday, surged forward in the leadership stakes.

Sources said since wide acceptability on any one leader was becoming difficult, the theory of least resistance among the Front partners was applied in choosing the leader.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi also met Bihar Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav. Yadav is reported to have told him that the candidate should be from the Janata Dal.

Gujral met Karunanidhi on Saturday morning and is understood to have sought the DMK's support for his candidature.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said the country must heave a sigh of relief that after almost three weeks of non-governance there will finally be a government at the Centre.

Reacting to Gujral's election, he said in a written statement that he hoped that the new government would last a little longer than the one headed by Deve Gowda.