Delhi the loser as BJP delays govt formation over political calculations

New Delhi: The situation in Delhi stands like this: no party - the BJP, the AAP or the Congress - is in a position to form the government on its own. The BJP, despite its resounding electoral victories across the country, is intriguingly diffident about contesting elections. Given the hardened position on all sides, the possibility of the party first forming the government then seeking to cobble together a majority is close to zilch. It does not have the strength and numbers can come only through horse-trading and other manipulative means. The AAP and the Congress won’t come together again. Both want fresh elections to end the uncertainty. Meanwhile, citizens of Delhi have to do without a government. The status quo has not changed over the last eight months, ever since the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP called it quits. The onus lies squarely with the BJP, the party which rules at the Centre. [caption id=“attachment_1777659” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Naresh Sharma/Firstpost[/caption] And without it making up its mind on either forming the government or going for elections, the inertia is likely to sustain. Constitutionally, it is in a position to continue President’s Rule till February. Thus the fresh round of excitement over the Supreme Court pulling up the Centre for delaying the formation of government in Delhi does not amount to much. “In a democracy, President’s Rule can’t go on forever. L-G (Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung) should have taken decision on government formation at the earliest and should not have taken five months time. We have given you enough time and nothing much has happened so far,” a SC bench told Narsimha. The bench further questioned whether “the BJP has the numbers to form government or not.” Additional Solicitor General PS Narsimha informed the court that President Pranab Mukherjee had given the nod to the L-G to invite the single largest party in Delhi to form the government in the state. With 28 legislators, the BJP is currently the largest party, but it falls short of six legislators to reach the magic number. If it forms a minority government it runs the risk of not winning the vote of confidence. If it tries to ‘manage’ by making members from other parties abstain from voting, it would be unethical. The fall of the government so quickly would be embarrassing for the party. That leaves only one option: election. But the party for some inexplicable reason wants to avoid it. Without making any announcement on whether it would form a government or go for a fresh poll, state BJP chief Satish Upadhyay said, “BJP is against vote bank politics. The party will take decision at the right time". Today’s remark by the Supreme Court has, predictably, evoked a sharp reaction from AAP chief Kejriwal. Pitching for fresh polls he challenged the BJP to go to the masses. “If election takes place now, the BJP will lose and the AAP will have unprecedented victory. The BJP should dissolve the Delhi assembly and go for elections.” “The BJP emerged as the single largest party, but it didn’t have the required numbers then to form a government. Now, from where they have got these numbers to prove majority in the House? Is it through horse-trading?” questioned AAP MLA and former minister Manish Sisodia. However, there is a section within the BJP that is against the formation of a government right now. “We want a fresh poll at the right time and come up with majority. This will help form a stable government, unlike in the previous case, where AAP had to take Congress support and finally quit,” a source in BJP said. But, no one has the answer on as to why the BJP delayed government formation and is also not going for fresh elections. “We’re ready for the election, but we won’t resort to horse-trading or any other means to form government in Delhi,” Union Minister of Urban Development, Housing, Urban Poverty Alleviation and Parliamentary Affairs, Venkaiah Naidu told a news channel. “Neither was the BJP in a position to form the government, nor did it want to have fresh polls. The AAP has been asking for re-election for a long time, which didn’t get support from either the BJP or the Congress,” an AAP member alleged. Senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi sought to put the blame on the AAP, saying: “Elections are contested to form a government and not to have President’s Rule. AAP formed government with the help of Congress but it continued with its dharna and gimmicks, and finally quit, leaving the people of Delhi in lurch.” The question staring at everyone, however, is how long can Delhiites be deprived of a government. Can their legitimate right be held hostage to political calculation of parties?