NEWSBEAT Shake hands and make up Chief minister Ramakrishna Hegde and the dissidents, led by H. D. Deve Gowda, have called a truce. But, given the belligerence of both sides, how long will it last?

ast week, Sunday wondered In fact, there is a persistent suspicion whether Ajit Singh, the new that in spite of the Express'reference to young president of the Janata central government sources, the trans­ Party would accept Ramak­ cript came from . Who stands rishna Hegde’s resignation. to gain the most from exposing a nexus This week, the answer is in. Yet anotherbetween Ajit Singh and Deve Gowda ofL Hegde’s resignation dramas has ask the cynics. Obviously, it is the chief drawn curtains prematurely. It was up­ minister. staged by a bigger story: the transcript The chief minister, of course, loudly of the phone conversation between Ajit denied his involvement. In fact, he tried Singh and Janata rebel leader H.D. Deve to give yet another tape episode Gowda, that appeared in Ihe Indian the political. mileage he had ex­ Express on 10 July. tracted from the -Byre The timing was devastating enough to Gowda tapes. This time hewasmuch look suspiciously like a deliberate plant. more subdued. But he is still the injured It came on the eve of Hegde’s departure innocent. “You know, even my phone is to Delhi for the crucial Janata Parliamen­ tapped, ” he said in Bangalore. So will he Hegde being welcomed by loyalists on his tary Board meeting. Worse. It was not lodge a protest with the central return from Delhi: triumphant carried along with the full text of government? “I have done it so many Hegde’s conditional resignation to Ajit times, what is the use?” he replied. Together, the party heavyweights Singh. Hegde’s first response was that he was, worked out a sort of an agreement. Both Neither Deve Gowda nor Ajit Singh in principle, against the tapping of the loyalists and the dissidents were denied the authenticity of the telephone phones. He also added that the mecha­ asked to observe a two-month truce. tape. Deve Gowda shrugged, “What nics of phone-tapping made it difficult for Meanwhile, the board loudly endorsed was new in that tape? I had already the tap to be done at the state level. its faith in the Ramakrishna Hegde announced publicly that I had spoken to The controversy over the ethics of government. That incidentally was one Ajit Singh and he had said there were no phone-tapping will no doubt linger on. of the conditions in Hegde’s letter to Ajit official candidates.” In fact, the tepid But the transcript had its expected Singh. The board also authorised or. as transcript gives little evidence of a grand impact. At least on Ajit Singh. At the the dissidents would have it, ordered the conspiracy between the two to outman­ Parliamentary Board meeting, the Janata chief minister to do what he could to oeuvre Hegde. But never mind. Singh chief had lost much initiative. Suddenly, patch things up. It proposed disciplinary seems to have walked into a trap. The the “we can’t impose a solution in action committees both at the central most offending line in the conversation is Karnataka” excuse was dropped. and state levels. These committees Ajit Singh’s,“Wonderful. If you win, all would go into dissident-raised issues, these problems will go away,” in re­ such as the controversy over the ‘expul­ sponse to Deve Gowda’s misplaced WHh deliberate cunning chief sion’ of six MLAs and the dissolution of confidence in the victory of dissident the Mandya and Hassan units. candidates ( in the 3 July elections to the minister R.K. Hegde tried to Legislative Council). Ajit Singh may not reduce the serious matter of nly those who believe in miracles be able to live that down too easily. His dissidence to a simple issue of will think that matters end there as only hope is that the controversy dwells Ofar as the Karnataka dissidence is con­ on the more serious issue of telephone­ discipline. But it is not likely that cerned. Ramakrishna Hegde is trying to tapping. In a curiously downplayed re­ tile hardcore dissidents will go for convince himself that they have. At a press conference right after his return port, the Express quoted Ajit Singh such a ploy blaming chief minister Ramakrishna from Delhi, he gave the impression that Hegde for tapping the telephone of his the problems were behind him. He colleague, Deve (Jowda. If that report is expressed happiness that the board had correct, it is a charge. 0 given him the go-ahead to act on his 34 SUNDAY 24— 30 July 1998 www.rohininilekani.org own. resolved in Karnataka itself. The logical With deliberate cunning, the chief conclusion of that argument would of minister tried to reduce the serious course have led the state party to a split. matter of dissidence to a simple issue of Surprisingly, Deve Gowda did not go to discipline. But it is .unlikely that the Delhi. And not very surprisingly, he had hardcore dissidents will go for such a allowed himself to be outwitted again. ploy. Already, rumours are that the Earlier, Hegde had let loose the idea dissidents wanted to make their displea­ that Deve Gowda was a party-breaker. sure over the board’s decisions public in This time, someone had exposed his Delhi itself. But they were somehow rumoured conspiracy with Ajit Singh. restrained. A cautious Deve Gowda is once again Naturally, the dissidents who went to holding talks with Hegde. But what will Delhi returned disappointed and some­ that achieve? Months and months of what embarrassed. It appeared as if the talks and more talks have yielded pre­ crestfallen Ajit Singh had withdrawn his cisely nothing, to the dismay of the subtle support to them. Worse, he had dissidents, who have willy-nilly hitched opted in favour of the chief minister. But their carts to Deve Gowda’s horse. And some dissidents like to think otherwise. Deve Gowda, always stoic on the Expelled MLA M.S. Narayan Rao record, is as aggressive as ever off the pointed to the party constitution. And record. This time, however, he seems a since the constitution showed that the little more optimistic. He is happy about expulsions were illegal, they would have the disciplinary action committees. “Ori­ to be revoked. “Besides,” he added, ginally, I had proposed the idea,” he "the board did not contradict Ajit Singh’s claims. Deve Gowda says the ball is now statement ^hat there were no official in Hegde’s court. candidates for the 3 July elections.” He is right. From now on, it is Other dissidents, however, admitted Hegde’s responsibility to undo the dam­ that the Delhi agreement had only age done to the . He has proved that the Janata high command received what he has so insistently was totally ineffective. Obviously Chan­ demanded: the green signal from the dra Shekhar and Ajit Singh are unpre­ party’s high command (if that’s what it pared to follow through with their argu­ is). He can no longer fume that his own ment that these matters should be party leaders are against him. He seems to have accepted that. “1 will begin the Dissidents Ramaiah and : process of restoring unity, ” he told the (aiied mission press. But Hegde has to do more than that. He has to be the mature statesman and go more than halfway to meet the dissidents. He now has to make the grand healing gestures. At the moment, the chief minister does not seem very conciliatory. He insists that the six expelled MLAs cannot be immediately restored as that will mean giving in to the forces of indiscipline. Tough talk, though he might have to change his stance as the days go by. Some hardcore dissidents are con­ vinced that it is already too late. It is impossible for the chief minister to reform himself, they say. He has to go. It is the same argument once again. Hardly the makings of a successful truce. But there is one theory that can accommodate their point of view. It is not a new theory but some dissidents still cling to it. That is, that the only reason why the Parliamentary Board openly backed Hegde was to give him elbow room. So that he can quit honour­ ably as chief minister in a few months. With Ramakrishna Hegde’s track re­ cord, that may, however, be wishful thinking.

Rohini Nitekani and Prakash Be\awad\l Bangalore

SUNDAY 24— 30 July ^9 35 www.rohininilekani.org