Prez rule irrevalent after UP poll dates announcement: Cong

Lucknow, Feb 24 (UNI) The Congress today categorically denied any effort to impose President's rule in Uttar Pradesh after announcement of assembly election dates.

''Although, we still maintain that the Mulayam Singh Yadav government is illegal, but UP is heading to polls. Now, President's rule is irrelevent,'' said UP Congress president Salman Khurshid.

The party has decided that the decision on the strategy to face trust vote of the Samajwadi Party government in the assembly would be decided by the legislators on Monday morning.

Addressing a news conference here, Mr Khurshid said the party will launch agitation against the present regime outside the assembly on February 26, when the government moves the trust vote.

''It is for sure that Congress will oppose the illegal Mulayam government ouside and inside the assembly,'' he maintained.

About the President's rule eposide, he said although Congress workers might be disappointed over not clamping central rule, but first they had to agree on the stability of the centre for all-round development of the country.

Mr Khurshid also sent two memorandums to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) N Gopalswamy to prevent UP government from appointing retired officials on contract basis. The other raises objections on the Samajwadi Party TV ad featuring Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan in which he claims law and order of UP is better than other states.

Congress legislature party leader Pramod Tiwari held it was unethical for SP to continue at the helm after Februrary 25 as they had resigned en masse in September 2001 raising up the same issue.

''SP leaders had termed that Ram Manohar Lohia did not want any legislator to continue for more than five yrs, but now what happened to the Lohia ideology,'' he questioned.

Mr Tiwari said Congress' decision on the confidence vote sought by the UP government on Monday will be decided in the meeting of the legislature party to be held that morning only.

UNI