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Rasheeda Bhagat

After much horse-trading, the Samajwadi Party leader, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, has won the vote of confidence in the UP Assembly. But the political shenanigans are far from over in the State, and for Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav the crown is but of thorns, says Rasheeda Bhagat.

For Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, is it CM's cap or crown of thorns?

THE Aaya Ram Gaya Ram politics of Uttar Pradesh has ushered in he Samajwadi Party chief, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, to the chief minister's post, and sent out the Bajujan Samaj Party's bahenji. In a week packed with action at the bourses, when the BSE Sensex did quite a few jigs, it is but natural to compare the volatile nature of UP's politics to the gyrations of the Sensex.

As stock market investors as well as punters cheered last week the racing of the Sensex towards the 4400 mark, so did the split in the BSP, with the required margin of one third to give it political legitimacy, helped Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav to scale the peak of 202 with a comfortable margin.

When the stock market session ended on Friday afternoon, the one question on every investor's mind was whether the Sensex would pass the 4400 barrier come Monday. Around the same time, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav was looking, with what can be best summed up in Hindi as hasrat bhari nigaheyt (yearningly), towards the BJP to help him through what then appeared the impossible figure of 202.

If the BJP abstained from voting in the House, he was through. But the BJP dashed his hopes by issuing a whip that all its MLAs should vote against the confidence motion that would place the crown, however thorny, on Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav's head.

But lo and behold, in a flash came the news that the breakaway group of the BSP had managed to bolster its numbers up to the magic figure of 37.

This was the minimum required as the BSP's strength in the Legislative Assembly was till then 110 and the anti-defection law requires at least one- third of MLAs coming out to allow split in any political party. No prizes for guessing how this number was managed. Horse-trading there must have been plenty but the last person who can point a finger at the Samajwadi Party resorting to this murky practice could be the BSP's deputy chief, Ms Mayawati. For people have certainly not forgotten how she formed the government in May 2002, even though her party had only 110 MLAs in a House of 403.

Even then, political propriety demanded that the Samajwadi Party, which had emerged as the single largest party with 142 legislators, followed by the BSP and the BJP with 110 and 87 members respectively, should be invited to form the government. But the UP Governor demanded letters of supports before Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav could be invited to form the government. The Congress, even though it had only 16 MLAs, dithered and the crucial time lag was used by the BJP and the BSP to form an unholy alliance yet again.

Anyway, the BSP's breakaway group has joined the Samajwadi Party and swelled its numbers adequately to give Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav's Government some kind of stability for the time being. That the former BSP MLAs will reap a rich dividend in terms of ministerial berths, to add to whatever they must have already got, is nothing worth debating. For the time being the Congress(I) has not joined the UP Government. But the way in which the small group of Congress(I) MLAs are salivating in a bid to grab a ministerial berth or two, is disgusting to say the least.

The new chief minister has made plenty of promises — of giving doles to unemployed youth, getting a better deal for the farmers of the State through some sop or the other and providing a "clean and transparent administration."

Unfortunately, the people of this country have seen such abysmal levels of politics and administrative chaos in States like UP and Bihar that they will have to be forgiven for not expecting anything dramatically different from the Mulayam Singh Government in UP. The number of politicians with criminal record, cutting across parties — including the BJP and the Congress(I) — roaming freely in the State is by itself a good enough reason for the hapless Uttar Pradeshis to fear for their future.

The most notorious of them all — Raja Bhaiya — is out of the prison where Ms Mayawati had put him under POTA. This was done more to settle political scores than to rid society of a person known to have violated the laws of the land. And now, he is out, once again because the political regime in the state has changed.

The ease with which the political bosses of the day can put people in prison, or get them out, is frightening to say the least. Ordinary folks like you and I are petrified to even jump a red light. But all that people with a criminal history need to do, to escape the arm of the law, is join a political party and win an election. And then set up a new charter of laws for the rest of us!

In the entire UP imbroglio, no political party has come out untainted.

The BSP's Ms Mayawati attempted an outrageous experiment with as valued a national treasure as the Taj Mahal. When caught with her hand in the till, she blatantly demanded the ouster of the Union Minister for Environment, Mr Jagmohan.

When the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, refused to respond to her tantrums, she backtracked. The kind of things she has done during her present tenure, right from the unseemly birthday bash to the kind of uncivil language she uses on her political foes, must surely be making all the votaries for increasing women's representation in politics, squirm.

Till yesterday the BJP's legislative party chief, Mr Lalji Tandon, was her great friend. She would tie rakhi on his wrist, exchange sweets under the full glare of camera lights and indulge in similar antics. But all of a sudden, and after parting of ways, he has now become Lalchi (greedy) Tandon for her! You will be forgiven for thinking that she might yet again go knocking on his door to tie the rakhi again next year, and what is worse, he might willingly extend his wrist to receive that honour.

As far as the Congress(I) is concerned, it cannot make up its mind whether it is waiting for its great "solo" moment, however long it might take to come, or whether it will heed the call of reality and firm up some alliances.

Even while it was supporting the Mulayam Government in UP on Monday, its strongman in Madhya Pradesh, Mr Digvijay Singh was bashing Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav, for looking towards a "communal party" like the BJP for support to remain on the CM's chair.

As for the BJP, Ms Mayawati has taught it any number of lessons, but its fear of the Samajwadi Party and the Congress(I) coming together, made it support Ms Mayawati once again, only to be given a rude shock.

As far as the SP and Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav are concerned, the pehelwan from Ittawa will have enough wrestling to do in the coming days. At the moment, and with the support of dissidents from the BSP, he might be sitting pretty, having won the confidence vote by a whopping 244 to 154. The State's impoverished farmers and angry students can be counted among the smaller of his problems.

The Ayodhya issue continues to simmer and as the sants and sadhus and mullahs begin yet another round of squabbling over the mandir-masjid saga, sooner than later, the cushy CM's gaddi will turn hot. Small wonder that the BJP did not put any major hurdles in his path to Lucknow's gaddi.

Talking about Lucknow, listening to our politicians' not-so-pleasant banter and watching their demeaning antics, one cannot help wondering whatever happened to the famous tameez and tehzib (grace and culture) for which Lucknow was once renowned? Certainly UP needs to throw up better symbols of it than a Mulayam or a Mayawati.

(Response can be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in)

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