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Lok Dal to decide on withdrawing support to Vajpayee on Saturday

The Indian National Lok Dal today announced that a meeting of its leaders was being convened on October 17 at Jind in Haryana to decide on continuing support to the central government.

The Lok Dal had protested the Bharatiya Janata Party decision to remove Sahib Singh Verma as Delhi chief minister.

The party, headed by former deputy prime minister Devi Lal, had extended unconditional support to the BJP government on the eve of declaration of poll results in March last. The Lok Dal has four MPs in the Lok Sabha and one in the Rajya Sabha.

Senior leader Om Prakash Chautala said the final decision regarding the continuance of support to the BJP-led coalition government will be taken at the meeting, which will be attended by all members of Parliament, legislative assemblies, national council and state council, besides district council members and heads of different cells of the party.

He said though the Sahib Singh affair was an internal matter of the BJP, yet it points towards ''the anti-farmer'' mentality of that party.

Chautala denied any decision on withdrawal of support to the government had been taken as reported in a section of the press.

Meanwhile, former Delhi CM Sahib Singh Verma today urged the INLD not to protest his removal as it was an internal matter of the BJP and not meant to be against the interests of the farming community.

Talking to reporters at the swearing-in ceremony of Sushma Swaraj as Delhi chief minister, Sahib Singh said, ''I would request Chautala that he should not be worried too much and the decision was not against farmers.''

Sahib Singh requested the INLD to continue support to the central government and there should not be any question of withdrawal of support on this issue.

UNI

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