Clamour grows for dismissal of UP government

New Delhi/Lucknow, Feb 17: As various parties, including the BJP, BSP, the RJD and the Congress, clamoured for the dismissal of the Mulayam Singh government in Uttar Pradesh after the Supreme Court disqualified 13 BSP MLAs supporting the regime, the Samajadi Party dared the Centre to impose President's Rule and said it would invoke the ''legal option'' if the step was taken.

Meanwhile, UP governor T V Rajeswar sent his report to the Centre on the recent political developments in the state following the Supreme Court's verdict.

Sources in Lucknow said the two-page report was sent by the Raj Bhawan this morning. It has been learnt that the report describes in detail the developments along with the demand of different political parties, including Congress, BJP, BSP and their views on the Court's ruling.

The report also speaks about likely 'horsetrading' in the present political situation.

Last night, the Governor had sent his preliminary report to the Centre and talked to Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil on telephone.

On the other hand, after announcing last night that the government will go for a trust vote on February 26, Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav has refused to step down from the post.

Mr Yadav, who is canvassing for his party in neighbouring Uttarakhand, categorically said that his government enjoyed absolute majority in the Assembly and there was no question of his resignation.

''If the Centre wants they can dismiss me,'' he said.

Meanwhile, the BJP, which today submitted a petition to Uttar Pradesh assembly speaker Mata Prasad Pandey seeking disqualification of 10 of its party MLAs for cross-voting during a confidence vote in the house on January 25, termed the present situation in UP ''a fit case for dismissal of the government and imposition of President's Rule.'' Maintaining that the SP Government had lost constitutional and legal sanctity to be in power even for one day, party vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi described Mr Yadav's effort to prove his majority on the floor of the House again as ''shameful''. ''It seems that Mr Yadav wants to make a world record of sorts, by engineering defections,'' he said in New Delhi.

He also slammed the Congress and the Communist Parties, for being equally responsible for the ''present mess and breakdown of constitutional machinery'' in the state.

The BSP was also vocal in its demand for the dismissal of the Mulyam Singh-led government in the state, and called on the Union government to lose no time in this measure.

''If the governor fears, as per the reports, that horse trading might take place, he should not hesitate sacking the Samajwadi Party-led government in the state,'' Party general secretary Satish Misra told UNI