Showdown In Jurassic Park

Priya Sahgal March 26, 2001 00:00 IST Showdown In Jurassic Park -0001-11-30T00:00:00+05:53

Give this Opposition a neatly-scripted drama and chances are they will mess it up. The way it’s handled Tehelkagate proves that. Observers say the exposé should have inspired a concerted attack on the government’s exposed flanks. Instead, the Opposition is too busy fighting itself. In the aftermath of the scandal, every issue except corruption is being discussed. Predictably, not even an elementary plan of action exists. Chaos reigns supreme.

The Congress says it will decide its course at its March 17-18 Bangalore plenary. The Left and the Samajwadi Party have revived the Third Front, with an emphasis on anti-poor policies rather than corruption charges against the nda regime. The tapes have given the bsp’s Mayawati an excuse to beat an old drum: the bjp’s anti-Dalit policies, evident in the way it sacrificed Bangaru Laxman so promptly. Says a Congress leader: "Credit George’s resignation to demands within the nda rather than the Opposition." He’s probably right.

The most visible sign of division is what SP leader Amar Singh calls the ‘anti-bjp,...