Central Govt not serious on Bill for Uttaranchal

The other members of this committee were Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh and his Punjab counterpart Parkash Singh Badal. It was asked to submit its report before the commencement of Parliament’s winter session so as to enable the Government to introduce the Uttaranchal bill during the month-long session.

But even after the lapse of over a month since the committee was formed, it has failed to hold any meeting till now, lending credence to the feeling that the Government is not really serious aboutintroducing the bill in the forthcoming session.

And with election to four state assemblies round the crorner, it is unlikely that it will be able to meet before the November 25 polls. A senior Akali Dal leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, admitted that the bill was likely to be delayed. “It is likely to go the way of the Women’s Reservation Bill,” he said rather derisively.

Senior officials in the Government feel that the delay in holding the meeting could also be attributed to fact that Fernandes, who is the chairman of the three-member committee, already has his hands full. “Besides holding a crucial portfolio and the post of Samata Party president, he has also been made the convenor of the coordination committee,” said a senior official, adding, “Having emerged as the Vajpayee Government’s leading troubleshooter, he has hardly had the time to look into the issue.”

Be that as it may, the Government’s inability to break the deadlock before the Assembly polls may have a bearing on theBJP’s prospects in Delhi where people hailing from the Uttarakhand region constitute an important vote-bank. There are over five lakh Uttarakhandis residing in the Capital and, in several assembly segments falling in outer, east and New Delhi, they have a significant presence.