Mulayam says Governor recommended his dismissal; Raj Bhawan denies

Lucknow, Nov 15 (UNI) Firing another salvo at the Raj Bhawan, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today hinted that Governor T V Rajeswar might have recommended the dismissal of his government.

He also favoured early assembly polls in the state, giving rise to speculation of dissolution of the present assembly.

''We want the election on time, and if required, before the completion of the five year term,'' Mr Yadav said, adding that it all depended on the Election Commission (EC) as less than six months were left for the expiry of the tenure of the present house.

Raising the issue of Raj Bhawan's role against his government, he told mediapersons here that he had specific information about the Governor sending his report for dismissal of the present coalition in Uttar Pradesh.

''There are several media reports about the recommendation and Raj Bhawan has never contradicted these reports, so there is something fishy about the matter,'' he observed.

Meanwhile, the Raj Bhavan, quoting Governor Rajeswar, clarified that no report had been sent to the Centre recommending dismissal of the Mulayam Singh Yadav government.

Ruling out any proposal to dissolve the assembly at the moment, Mr Yadav said,''now the ball is in the EC's court and they have to decide when to hold the polls.'' He claimed that it was a conducive time for the SP to contest the polls as ''people's support'' was with the state government for its pro-people attitude and development initiative.

Talking about the demand of President's rule in UP by the BJP and Congress, the Chief Minister quipped that since these parties did not have any issue, they were raking up the issue of dismissal.

''If any government is dismissed in such a manner, then how can democracy work in the country,'' he questioned. He added that during the recently concluded urban local bodies poll, except for the mayoral elections, the opposition had been wiped out.

Commenting on the recent statement of BSP supremo Mayawati about her party's support to BJP and Congress in the civic poll, he said the BSP only wanted to remain in controversies through ''casteist and communal remarks.'' ''My earlier allegations about the BSP's nexus with BJP and Congress has been proved true by this statement,'' he added.

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