PM Manmohan Singh won’t give in; snap poll an option

Pounded with the severe opposition onslaught on his image and the continuing disruption of parliamentary proceedings, prime minister (PM) Manmohan Singh seems to have hardened himself against any pressure tactic.

If the situation of confrontation comes to the worst, he might go for a snap poll, according to sources close to the UPA top brass.

The indication that the government is not going to give in was clear on Friday when party general secretary Rahul Gandhi and senior minister Kapil Sibal batted for Singh. By holding fast on not speaking out on the controversy, Singh himself has made it fairly clear that he won’t surrender.

“I don’t think he is in an embarrassing position at all,” Gandhi said when asked about the Supreme Court’s observations on the PM. Sibal, who now holds the telecom portfolio after the resignation of A Raja, said as far as the prime minister’s office (PMO) is concerned, “we are absolutely clear that we have done no wrong”.

“In fact, I do believe that the prime minister is a man of integrity. I don’t think that anybody in this country believes that he was trying to circumvent the law,” he said. AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi had made it clear that the party “had stood, is standing and will stand” by Singh.

The PM is deeply hurt that the opposition is targeting him personally. He told some of the leaders who met him that he would not have buckled under opposition pressure to sack Raja. But the former minister committed a blunder by saying that whatever he did was in the knowledge of the PM.

The PM was also willing to constitute a JPC if it is for the telecom sector in a composite manner rather than the mega one involving Commonwealth Games (CWG) and Adarsh housing scam too. The opposition had also indicated that the Adarsh issue could be dropped as it was a state subject. For the CWG, talks were under way. But suddenly the opposition hardened its stand, leading to a breakdown of the negotiations.

The Congress establishment is not keen on a snap poll for a variety of reasons, but with the political stalemate continuing, it is certainly pondering over the consequences of such an exercise.

The PM can turn the table on the opposition by seeking a clean mandate. He can put it across that if he is expected to run an honest and clean government, then he has to so it without allies.

They should vote for a single party government led by the Congress.

The opposition is not in a safe position on the corruption issue too. There are enough skeleton in its cupboard. The fact that it does not want a JPC on the entire telecom sector and seeks to focus on 2G and Raja period alone is an indicator.

The government has already let loose investigating agencies against some of the BJP leaders, including those close to party president Nitin Gadkari. Sudhanshu Mittal and his relatives are already under scanner.

Knowledgeable sources in the Congress, however, do not visualise a possibility of Singh resigning following some adverse comments from the Supreme Court.

“Assuming he resigns, the party will elect a new leader. After all, UPA has a majority in the house and there are no claimants in the opposition for the post”, said a close confidante of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.