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How Gupta got a reprieve in UP

Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow

The failure of the Bharatiya Janata Party central leadership to find an alternative to Ram Prakash Gupta, to head the Uttar Pradesh coalition, has given a fresh reprieve to the chief minister.

Gupta seemed on his way out Sunday, when the central leadership held closed-door deliberations with state leaders Rajnath Singh, Lalji Tandon, Om Prakash Singh and Kalraj Misra. However, with the high command unable to reach a consensus, there was no choice but to continue with Gupta.

While the central leadership was keen on sending Union Surface Transport Minister Rajnath Singh to head the state, the trio of UP ministers - Tandon, Misra and Om Prakash Singh - opposed the move.

Even though there is no love lost between the three, they ganged up to thwart Rajnath Singh's installation. All three are in the race and none was willing to accept a younger man. In fact, Misra and Tandon ensured Kalyan Singh's exit and Rajnath Singh had joined hands with them.

But once Kalyan was shown the door, neither Misra nor Tandon could convince the central leadership of their credentials because of their controversial reputations. While Union Human Resources Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi's name was also considered, the party soon realised that he would not be able to carry the divergent groups in the coalition.

When realisation dawned that only someone non-controversial would by acceptable, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee brought Ram Prakash Gupta out of oblivion and handed him the top post in the state.

However with one debacle after another at successive elections - Rajya Sabha and Vidhan Parishad - the party leadership soon realised its mistake. Gupta's mild mannerisms and seeming lack of interest in administration gave his ministers unbridled powers. His bid to appease all led to Gupta being branded a man of "non-governance".

With other chief ministerial aspirants running him down, the party was soon looking for a new incumbent. With Misra, Tandon and Om Prakash Singh indulging in a tug-of-war, Rajnath Singh was seen as ideal for the job. His high-profile political skills, decision-making abilities and a relatively "cleaner" reputation took him ahead.

With panchayat elections round the corner, the BJP leadership was keen to replace Gupta to infuse life into the rank and file in Uttar Pradesh.

But the situation came back to square one when there was no consensus. According to sources, Misra and Tandon even roped in two prominent Thakur leaders to oppose Rajnath Singh. This was to give the impression that even the Thakur leaders were not in his favour.

Hence, it was found that "there is no alternative to Gupta", at least for now.

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