Uttarakhand: With 31 seats, BJP hopeful of forming govt

NEW DELHI: BJP, which is the second-largest party in Uttarakhand, is hopeful of outmaneuvering Congress to form the next government in the state.

Though BJP will wait and watch Congress, which has 32 seats, against its 31, staking claim to form the government, BJP seems confident that Congress will not be able to muster at least four MLAs needed to secure a clear majority in a 70-member assembly. "Constitutional propriety demands that Congress be invited first to form the government. It will not be able to muster the numbers," BJP general secretary Dharmendra Pradhan claimed on Wednesday.

According to a party leader, BJP's confidence stems from the outcome of its negotiations with five of the seven remaining MLAs - three of BSP, three Congress rebels and one of the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (Panwar). A BJP leader said the party had managed the backing of five of the seven MLAs, but refused to disclose names.

The Congress rebels are Mantri Prasad Naithani, Harish Chand Durga Pal and Dinesh Dhanai. It may not be a cakewalk for BJP as independents could gravitate towards Congress once it nominates its chief ministerial candidate and is invited by governor Margaret Alva to prove its majority.

"We are assessing the political situation. In case, the party thinks that it is appropriate to form the government, we will surely stake our claim," outgoing chief minister BC Khanduri said after meeting BJP's central observers.

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati is still keeping her cards close to her chest on the party's strategy in Uttarakhand. At a press conference in Lucknow, Mayawati said she was yet to take a call on her party's stand Uttarakhand.

Besides efforts of getting numbers on its side, BJP has another hurdle to cross - choosing its chief ministerial candidate. After the party's central leaders - Rajnath Singh, Ananth Kumar and Pradhan - met state leaders and the legislative party members earlier in the day, it was decided to leave the decision to the BJP's parliamentary board.

Khanduri lost by 4,632 votes in Kotdwar, but it was under his leadership that the BJP fought the elections. He was brought in at the eleventh hour to save the party and almost managed to do so.

Once government formation in Uttarakhand is through, BJP will get down to stock taking in its backyard. BC Khanduri's defeat has come as a surprise to the party, which is bound to scrutinise the reports of sabotage.

Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, who had reluctantly stepped down as chief minister to make way for Khanduri, is unlikely to escape the party's ire.

BJP is also complaining about the "large number" of undelivered postal ballots, which it had banked upon in a contest where margins were narrow.