Thackeray scared of report: Bhujbal

MUMBAI, March 22: The Congress will press for the tabling of the Srikrishna Commission report this week as demanded earlier and will not all...

MUMBAI, March 22: The Congress will press for the tabling of the Srikrishna Commission report this week as demanded earlier and will not allow the alleged diversionary tactics of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray to succeed in scuttling the Action Taken Report, leader of the opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Chhagan Bhujbal said here today.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Bhujbal who described the current run-in between the Sena chief and Chief Minister Manohar Joshi as a “nautanki” said, going by past experience, he expected the crisis to subside within the next week. However, amid reports that Justice Srikrishna could have passed strictures against Thackeray and at least one other top Shiv Sena leader, he said it was possible that the current crisis precipitated by Thackeray was aimed at diverting attention of the Sena-BJP as well as the opposition from the main issues on hand.

“The allegations against Manohar Joshi are not new, they have been written about in the past. There wasno seemly reason why Thackeray should then choose this moment to take him to task,” Bhujbal said.

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The opposition in the State Legislature is awaiting with bated breath the Srikrishna Commission report which the Chief Minister promised would be tabled in the second week and discussed at the end of the session.

However, Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde maintained that the report has to be first discussed in the cabinet following which the government would decide on the Action Taken Report.

Congressmen now apprehend that Thackeray’s intention to disappear for 90 days might have been for possibly evading the crisis that is bound to overtake the Government once the report becomes public. On the other hand, according to Hussain Dalwai, the president of the State unit of the Samajwadi Party, “The current shakedown of Joshi could also be aimed at buying time against his own (Thackeray’s) possible indictment. For even if they do not take action against the Sena chief, we will definitely not turn a blindeye.” The Congress has a vested interest in ensuring the publication of the report. They have had to battle allegations for more than five years that some of their own top leaders were allegedly involved in the exacerbation of the riots when they could have stemmed the bloodshed with some concerted and timely action.

“We are not going to let go,” says Bhujbal. “It is a six-week session and there are other equally important issues like the Finance Bill and that related to the Mayor-in-Council. We are determined to put the government on the mat on that as well”.