NEW
DELHI (NNN-PTI) --The top Congress leadership on Wednesday got into a huddle to
finalise its strategy in the wake of Trinamool Congress deciding to withdraw
its support to the UPA government as another key ally Samajwadi Party will meet
on Thursday to decide its stand.
Congress
president Sonia Gandhi drove to the race course residence of Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh and was closeted with him over discussions on how to tackle the
threat to the Government caused by Trinamool’s decision.
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Minister P Chidambaram, Defence Minister A K Antony and Gandhi’s political
secretary Ahmed Patel were also present in the discussion. Earlier in the day,
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia had a meeting with
the Prime Minister.
Trinamool,
the second largest constituent of UPA with 19 MPs on Tuesday night decided to
withdraw support to the government and pull out its ministers opposing the
decision to hike diesel price, cap supply of subsidised LPG cylinders and allow
FDI in multi brand retail.
It
has set a deadline of Friday afternoon to reconsider its stand if the
government rolls back its decisions.
Meanwhile,
Mulayam Singh Yadav, leader of the 22-strong Samajwadi Party, whose support for
government assumes importance in the current context, expressed opposition to
Government’s decisions but declined to reveal the party strategy.
“On
Thursday there is a meeting of the Samajwadi Party’s Parliamentary Board. We
will decide our strategy there,” he told reporters.
The
SP chief said his party would go ahead with its plans to hold demonstrations to
oppose the price hike. “There will be opposition in Uttar Pradesh and the
entire country. The demonstrations in support of people’s issue will happen,”
Mulayam said.
He
criticised the Government saying that its policies have added to the burden of
the common man.
“We
want that wisdom should dawn upon the Government. What have you (the
government) given to the people apart from inflation and corruption. There is
so much burden on the common man, so much burden on the farmers,” Mulayam
added.
“This
obstinate attitude will only weaken it. Due to this attitude, the Congress
party will become very weak,” he said.
Mulayam
was asked by the reporters if he thought that the attitude of the government
was coming in the way of its smooth functioning.
Following
Trinamool’s decision, the strength of UPA in the Lok Sabha has come down from
273 to 254, which is 19 short of the half-way mark of 273 in the Lok Sabha.
However, with the support of outside allies SP (22), BSP (21), RJD (4) and JD-S
(3), its strength goes upto 304 in a House of 545. --NNN-PTI
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