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Fernandes calls for review of government's policies

Addressing a press conference shortly after taking over the reins of the Samata Party, Fernandes dismissed various news reports that appeared last week that he was opposed to the government's divestment policy.

"I have not either in my letter or orally asked to be invited to a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment. Whosoever has floated this story has floated a lie," he said.

Fernandes said he had sought a meeting with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the convening of a "small group" of ministers to "reconcile" differences on the sell-off process.

Asked what he wanted, Fernandes said, "We need to have a review followed by course correction wherever necessary and identify the areas where there is scope for reforms because out of five years [of the NDA government's term], three years are getting over."

He insisted that he was not saying the process of divestment should be stopped, merely seeking a review.

Referring to the privatisation of hotels, he said capable hoteliers should be handed over the hotels to run them on profit. "If someone takes it for a song, demolishes the building, and makes millions of rupees out of the land, it is not fair," he said.

Opposing the creation of "private monopolies" to challenge public-sector monopolies, he said neither his party nor anyone individually had attacked the divestment process. "We have some suggestions to make. We have sought a meeting to be convened by the prime minister. Having a different viewpoint does not mean attack. You seek a dialogue and try to reconcile views."

Fernandes also dismissed reports quoting him as saying that the divestment process impinged on national security. "Whoever has said this, for whatever purpose, [it] is a lie," he said.

Citing the example of Britain, the mother of divestment, Fernandes said that country was now rethinking the process.

Earlier, Fernandes took over as president of the dissident-ridden Samata Party after a gap of two years amidst criticism within the party of the Bharatiya Janata Party's attitude and the role of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

The 72-year-old politician was elected unanimously at the party's national executive meeting to replace V V Krishna Rao, who had taken over from Jaya Jaitly when she was forced to quit in the wake of the Tehelka corruption expose.

Fernandes's name was proposed by Krishna Rao and seconded by Railway Minister Nitish Kumar.

Asked if the Samata Party would contest the Gujarat election under Modi's leadership, Fernandes said the issue of an electoral alliance had not been discussed. The national council, the party's highest policy-making body, will take up the matter in Rajkot in the last week of September.

Party MP Arun Kumar criticized Modi for his handling of the situation in Gujarat during the communal violence earlier this year and demanded his resignation. "We have a natural commitment to secularism and it is not merely for the sake of votes," he said.

Fernandes has staged a comeback in organisational matters at a time when the party is witnessing dissident activities, especially in Bihar and Jharkhand.

Worried at the manner in which some party members and legislators in these states are indulging in anti-party activities, the central leadership felt it was high time for him to take charge and halt the drift.

Sources said that since the party is a force to reckon with only in these two states, any activity that could harm it there would not be tolerated. Only a leader of Fernandes's stature, they added, could control the dissidents.

Fernandes, founder president of the Samata Party, had stepped down in 2000 following an Election Commission directive and passed on the baton to his confidante Jaya Jaitly.

PTI

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