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'The time had arrived for the democratic will of the people to be ascertained once again'

The following is the text of the presidential communique dissolving the 12th Lok Sabha:

'Consequent on the outcome of the motion of confidence in the council of ministers which was put to vote in the Lok Sabha on April 17, 1999, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, prime minister, submitted his resignation and that of the council of ministers to the President, that afternoon. The President accepted the resignation and requested the prime minister to continue in office until alternative arrangements were made. The hon'ble Speaker met the President later that afternoon and give him the details of the votes cast by each individual MP.

'The President received, the same afternoon, a delegation led by Shri George Fernandes, convenor of the coordination committee of the BJP and its allies which put forward its point of view that the President should not appoint a prime minister who will not be able to secure a credible majority and will also, conceivably, lose the confidence of the house, becoming head of yet another caretaker government. This was followed up by a letter from Shri George Fernandes enclosing a copy of resolution adopted at a meeting of the BJP-led alliance partners and parties asserting that the only viable alliance that could be sworn-in was that led by A B Vajpayee.

'The President began intensive consultations with legal and constitutional experts on April 18, 1999. On April 19, 1999, Prof P J Kurien, MP and Shri Oscar Fernandes, MP met the President and gave him copies of resolutions of the CPP and the CWC authorising Smt Sonia Gandhi to take all further action in this regard. The President wrote to Smt Sonia Gandhi on April 20, 1999 inviting her to hold discussions with him the next day.

'In commencing these consultations, the President had two major objectives: (1) the need to avid ordering a mid-term election and (2) the importance of seeing whether a party, or a combination of parties, can provide a workable, viable alternative government with the prospect of stability for a substantial period of time if not for the remaining term of the twelfth Lok Sabha.

'After her meeting with the President on April 21, 1999 Smt Sonia Gandhi made a public statement to the effect that the Congress had a total support of 272 MPs and intended to form a government on its own with outside support. She indicated that, as required, she would contact those parties and individuals who were supporting the Congress, obtain letters of support from them, and would be conveying the outcome of her efforts to the President in two days' time.

'The President's consultations with legal and constitutional experts including the attorney general of India continued meanwhile. He also held discussions on April 22, 23 and 24, 1999 with the following parties and individuals:

'Shri H K S Surjeet, general secretary, CPI-M and Shri Jyoti Basu, chief minister, West Bengal.

'Shri A B Bardhan, general secretary, CPI.

'Ms J Jayalalitha, general secretary, AIADMK.

'Shri R S Gavai, MP, Shri Ramdas Athawale, MP and Prof Jogendra Kawade, MP (all of Republican Party of India).

'Shri Debabrata Biswas, general secretary, Shri Amar Roypradhan and Shri Bir Singh Mahato from All India Forward Bloc and Shri Pankajakshan, general secretary and Shri Debabrata Bandopadhyay, member (central committee) from Revolutionary Socialist Party.

'Shri Mulayam Singh Yadav, president and Shri Amar Singh, general secretary, Samajwadi Party.

'Ms Mayawati, Bahujan Samaj Party.

'Dr Subramanian Swamy, Janata Party.

'Shri G K Moopanar, president, Tamil Maanila Congress.

'Shri Buta Singh, MP (LS).

'Shri Ram Jethmalani, minister of urban affairs and employment.

'Shri Laloo Prasad Yadav, president, Rashtriya Janata Dal.

'Shri Sharad Yadav, president, Janata Dal.

'The leaders of CPI-M and CPI conveyed to the President their unconditional support to the government led by the Congress. Leaders of the RPI, AIADMK, Janata Party and RJD gave him letters indicating their support to a government led by the Congress. Shri G K Moopanar reiterated his party's support to the idea of a Congress-led government.

'Shri Jaswant Singh, minister of foreign affairs, Shri Murasoli Maran (DMK) and Shri Vaiko (MDMK) called on the President and urged upon him the need for the consultation process to (i) conclude early, and (ii) include the claim of the BJP and its allies to be invited. The President informed them that (a) the process of consultations would end shortly, and (b) he had an obligation to exhaust the first round of consultations with those who had voted against the motion of confidence on April 17, 1999 and after that, if those consultations failed to result in an alternative government, take up the BJP'S claim. On Shri Jaswant Singh's asking if the ruling alliance would be part of the consultation process if they could show accretion of strength, the President replied in the affirmative.

'On April 25, 1999 Smt Gandhi called on the President and informed him that in the further time that she had been given, she had tried her best but had not been able to make much further progress. The President said to her that since his search was for a viable government which could secure a vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha, inviting the Congress when its support base in the Lok Sabha remained well short of the ruling coalition's proven strength of 269, was out of the question. Smt Gandhi also informed him that it was the categorical and unanimous view of the Congress Working Committee that it could not support a third front government.

'Shri Jyoti Basu, Shri H K S Surjeet and Shri Sitaram Yechury called on the President and explained the CPI-M's stand on the question of an alternative government and observed that, under the circumstances, no forward movement for a non-BJP led government was possible.

'The prime minister met the president at 8.40 pm on April 25, 1999. The President conveyed to him that (a) the non-BJP parties had not succeeded in coming up with an alternative and (b) no accretion in the number supporting the BJP-led alliance had been brought to his notice either. He gave the prime minister his assessment that the twelfth Lok Sabha was not capable of yielding a government with a reasonable prospect of stability.

'The recourse to dissolution on the defeat of a minority/coalition government arises when it appears to the President that a stable government cannot be formed without a general election. Dissolution is indicated if an alternative government with a working majority which can be expected to carry on for a reasonable period of time is not feasible. The President informed the prime minister that in his perception the dissolution of the twelfth Lok Sabha had therefore become necessary.

'The prime minister responded by saying that he would discuss the position in cabinet the following day.

'The cabinet met at 12 noon on April 26, 1999 and recorded a minute recommending to the President that he may dissolve the twelfth Lok Sabha so that a fresh mandate could be obtained from the people as early as possible. The minute converged with the President's own analysis of the situation.

'The President could not but observe that the ruling alliance had lost its majority because of a lack of cohesion within its ranks and those who voted out the alliance showed the same lack of cohesion when trying to form an alternative government. In this situation, the President reached the conclusion that the time had arrived for the democratic will of the people to be ascertained once again, so that a government can be formed which can confidently address the urgent needs of our people.

'The President has, by a presidential order, under sub clause (b) of clause 2 of Article 85 of the Constitution of India dissolved the twelfth Lok Sabha today.

'The official notification in respect to the date for the constitution of the new Lok Sabha will, in accordance with the recommendations of the Election Commission, be published in due course.

'The President wishes to thank legal and constitutional experts, political leaders and others who have given him their valuable advice and suggestions.'

UNI

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