Kanpur: Coal Minister Shri Prakash Jaiswal on Thursday stirred a hornet’s nest by declaring the possibility of President’s rule in Uttar Pradesh in the event of the Congress failing to secure majority in the ongoing assembly elections in the state.

While interacting with media persons, Jaiswal said "If the Congress does not get the majority in Uttar Pradesh then there will be President’s rule in the state."

All major political parties were quick to condemn the statement. Senior Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) leader Uma Bharti said, "Congress has feudal mindset and they don't believe in democracy. The people will give their answer through votes."

Samajwadi Party General Secretary Ram Gopal Yadav said Jaiswal had violated the election code of conduct and his party would complain to the Election Commission about the incident.

Samajwadi Party (SP) state president Akhilesh Yadav said the Congress had given up in its fight and was no where in the fray in the battle for power in UP.

The Congress had earlier invoked the fear of President’s rule in Uttar Pradesh barely hours before the state voted in the first phase of elections. “If we are not able to form the government, there will be President’s rule in the state,” Digvijaya Singh, the party’s general secretary in charge of the state, had said in Allahabad.

Close on the heels of Digvijay, Bhartiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Yogi Adityanath also ruled out the possibility of the formation of any popular government in the state.  "Let me tell you that no political party will be in a position to form the government," the sadhu-turned-politician had told reporters.  On being asked if he was foreseeing President's rule in UP, he shot back, "You jolly well know what happens when no political party is in a position to form the government in a state."
 
Although rivals have interpreted these statements as a sign of surrender by a party that created a false impression about its imminent triumph, the ploy is aimed at maximising the gains it is expecting in this crucial election. The timing is significant as the Congress does not want any confusion about its agenda, particularly against the backdrop of an overwhelming perception that it could sew up an alliance with Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party.

Congress sources said the leadership had assessed the pros and cons to reach the conclusion that this perception could prove to be more harmful than the general dislike for President’s rule. The party did not talk of President’s rule initially as its first priority was to whittle down Mayawati’s political clout and drum into the voters that her return was impossible.

In this process, however, another political peril took shape as people presumed that the only viable alternative was a Samajwadi-Congress coalition. This perception was dangerous for the Congress as both Brahmins and Muslims got confused and started re-assessing their options. Although Rahul mounted a scathing attack on the Samajwadi to counter this perception, voters largely took that as a pre-poll rhetoric and started foreseeing the Congress and Mulayam’s party as a unit.

Rahul was then compelled to spell out that the Congress would not ally with any party. Digvijaya decoded the message further by directly talking of President’s rule. The Congress was quick to endorse this view officially, with spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi declaring that no post-poll alliance was possible. “We are not interested in a game in Uttar Pradesh for the sake of power,” he said.