ASSEMBLY POLL '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ELECTIONS '98
ARCHIVES

Vajpayee makes conciliatory phonecall to Chautala

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had a telephonic conversation with the Indian National Lok Dal chief Om Prakash Chautala following his threat to withdraw support to the BJP-led coalition government.

The party's spokesman M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters today that Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan also talked to Chautala in this connection. He, however, refused to divulge the details about their talks. ''We hope that after his talks with the prime minister and Mahajan, Chautala will not give a chance to the Congress to take advantage of the situation,'' he added.

Only yesterday, Chautala had threatened to withdraw his party's support to the Vajpayee government for its refusal to roll back the hike in urea prices. The party has four members in the 544-member Lok Sabha where the BJP and its allies command a slender majority. Chautala was expected to make a formal announcement at a public rally in Haryana on February 12 of his decision.

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report