'Manmohan should not threaten the Opposition'
Interview with Samajwadi Party Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav for Teekhi Baat on IBN 7.
PC:
Is it true that your party men believe that you should be and are going to be
future Prime Minister
MSY:
I cannot speak on this issue because becoming a Prime Minister is not an
ordinary thing. And if there is a feeling among party workers, some journalist
friends, I respect those feelings.
PC:
If you get a chance, you will keep in mind the feelings of party workers. You
said it is difficult, but what if you get a chance?
MSY:
I don’t see any chance.
PC:
Don’t your party men believe that your number of MP’s will increase
MSY:
Lok Saba members would increase. But till now I have not thought whether I
would become Prime Minister. And it is true that I have not even thought.
PC:
Not you’ve started to think after sensing emotions of party workers
MSY:
Not thought.
PC:
You made Deve Gowda the Prime Minister
MSY:
It is true that I supported Deve Gowda saab.
PC:
You supported Gujral saab too
MSY:
I did, and Comrade Surjeet was with me, he extended support.
PC:
Surjeet also proposed your name
MSY:
Surjeet also proposed my name. But when I took Deve Gowda’s name, then Surjeet
saab supported me.
PC:
Then why didn’t you become
MSY:
Both of us together supported Deve Gowda
PC:
When he took your name first, you should have become PM
MSY:
Now there were some people
PC:
They opposed you
MSY:
They opposed me
PC:
You don’t want to take their names
MSY:
There is no need to take their names
PC:
One of them is no more
MSY:
The whole country knows the name
PC:
Nobody knows, only if you tell
MSY:
The whole country knows
PC:
I don’t know, I was around then
MSY:
It is not the moment to tell now
PC:
One of people who opposed is not around now
MSY:
Leave that issue.
PC:
Let me come to the current political scenario, you would have listened to Prime
Minister’s speech yesterday. He said that we will not take back the decisions
on FDI, hike in diesel prices and other works that we did, and will take more
tough measures. Do you agree?
MSY:
Prime Minister should not issue threats in this manner. He said that the
decisions taken are in farmers interest, but they are against the interest of
farmers. The whole decision is anti farmer. Farmers would be the worst affected
due to this.
PC:
But he threatened and said that the people who are misleading by opposing, now
even you are opposing this policy. Hence, Mulayam Singh Yadav, or other parties
who were opposing these things are really misleading people
MSY:
We were not alone to oppose it, there were 8 parties. The whole opposition was
opposing.
PC:
Are you misleading
MSY:
It is a democracy, in a democracy Prime Minister should have called opposition
leaders to make them understand and explain what he wanted to say, that this is
our policy. We could have also given our opinion regarding some changes needed.
Then it would have been good and the Prime Minister’s respect would have
increased. But Prime Minister is threatening now, that is why we are opposing.
PC:
Will you reply to the threat
MSY:
Being a Prime Minister and speaking in this manner with the opposition was not
good
PC:
He also said that money does not grow on trees, the expenditure of the
government has increased.
MSY:
Don’t know if he was angry or what was the reason. But looking at the way he
was speaking, he did not seemed normal. Prime Minister is Prime Minister, if he
says, we will listen, to disagree with oppose policies if the job of the
opposition. But he should have spoken in a good manner, and told the opposition
that they should speak to him if they had any doubts. He should have explained
them that he is taking bringing these policies in the interest of the country,
farmers and poor people.
PC:
Watching the Prime Minister’s speech, you felt that not a Prime Minister, but
an economist was speaking
MSY:
Prime Minister was speaking
PC:
But his language
MSY:
The language of the Prime Minister should not be such. ]
PC:
You don’t agree, nobody should be threatened
MSY:
Take it as threat or their resolve to do it.
PC:
He made it clear yesterday, you do any amount of dharna, protests, on the
streets, we will further increase rates, keep the economic policies going, then
Mulayam Singh Yadav, who will with poor and farmers
MSY:
I am clear I will speak for the public. Will go among the people, tell them the
decision is against the interest of the farmer, poor and labourers. If the
government could have not done anything else, they should have said that they
will give employment so many people by bringing this policy, who will they give
employment, they should give employment to unemployed. If we talk about shop
keepers and traders, the trader poor fellow will work for them. He has not
business other than the trade he does.
PC:
What pressure you would build on the government to take back these policies
MSY:
Let them take back the policies or not, we will keep on saying that the
policies are not in interest of the nation.
PC:
Will you put no pressure for taking them back
MSY:
They have refused to take them back.
PC:
You can bring a proposal in the Parliament
MSY:
We will oppose in parliament when the session is held.
PC:
If you have 20-22 MP’s you can bring a proposal demanding that the government
should go back on these steps
MSY:
We will speak against their policies which are wrong. But we work to keep
communal forces at bay, and if will pull out support now
PC:
I am not talking of support, I am telling that the government will not fall if
you bring a proposal to take back these policies
MSY:
We will oppose
PC:
But not brig a proposal
MSY:
When the Lok Sabha session is on, we will call a party meeting and take a
decision on this. Then there are leaders of other parties, we will speak to
them, it will not work if we are alone
PC:
Mamta said she will bring a proposal that these policies need to be withdrawn,
she is not communal, you don’t consider he to be communal?
MSY:
Mamta is not communal, she is secular. On many occasion, she has
supported me against communal forces
PC:
If she bring a proposal that FDI should be rolled back, diesel prices should
lessened.
MSY:
We will not oppose the proposal tabled by Mamtaji.
PC:
Will you support it or not
MSY:
What does it mean if I am saying I will not oppose
PC:
No no, what if you abstain
MSY:
No we will not oppose her proposal. We will also call a meeting of our
parliamentary board. There is still time for that.
PC:
You will not oppose, the party will decide whether you will support Mamtaji’s
proposal or not
MSY:
We will support, and it may be possible that our party tables the proposal
PC:
This can happen
MSY:
Can happen
PC:
Because parliament has not vetted the decision that have been taken. Many times
parliament does not vet such policies because government has powers to pass
such orders
MSY:
It is a straight thing, I we oppose, we will oppose it everywhere. May be if
the government is enlightened, they will take back the policy before a proposal
is tabled.
PC:
You are saying that you are supporting this government as communal forces may
come to power. How can a BJP with 116 seats form a government Mulayam Singhji,
you made an excuse?
MSY:
Even other people are supporting them.
PC:
Till you don’t support the government cannot be formed
MSY:
Others are supporting them
PC:
Even then the tally is 150
MSY:
No, it is more than 150
PC:
May be 160, 180, you have to make it clear to people and media that a
government of communal forces cannot be formed in this Lok Sabha. You are not
withdrawing support, when according to you all policies of Congress are anti
people, anti aam aadmi,
MSY:
We will vote against these policies, will speak against these policies. We will
do all that
PC:
But you will not withdraw from the government
MSY:
It is not the time to withdraw support from the government. We will oppose the
anti people proposals that they are bringing and will vote against them.
PC:
You have given a letter of support to the President
MSY:
We have given support to run the government, have we given it from them to
bring what ever proposal they want and do whatever they want to do.
PC:
Have you extended support to run the government or in the interest of the
common people
MSY:
We will support whatever is in the interest of the common man and will
oppose anti people policies.
PC:
Do you consider the incumbent government anti people or not, today’s policies
MSY:
The policies that are being proposed are anti people, and we will oppose these
policies
PC:
In the house also
MSY:
In the house and among the people.
PC:
But will not go to the President to write a letter
MSY:
No, that is a different thing.
PC:
It is anti people you said
MSY:
We will oppose in the Lok Sabha and outside.
PC:
You said that you will support the proposal in the Lok Sabha (Mamta’s proposal)
MSY:
We cannot oppose it, when her proposal is tabled, against the anti people
policies, how can we oppose it. We ourselves are opposing it. When Samajwadi
Party is opposing it, then how can we oppose the proposal?
PC:
Whatever proposals a secular party tables, that you will support, but not
others.
MSY:
They will oppose, we will also oppose. Both of us together will oppose.
PC:
As a proposal and otherwise too
MSY:
Yes, even our party can bring a proposal. Now we will decide how we will
oppose, they party will decide
PC:
I feel that you are still not clear whether to trouble the government or not
MSY:
I never go into confusion, we too have a party and a big party, the third
largest, but the parliamentary board will decide. Now we will decide on the
proposal that is to be tabled (by Mamta). But now we will not withdraw our
support to the government.
PC:
You will not oppose the proposal that Mamta will bring
MSY:
We will not oppose, may be our party may bring the proposal.
PC:
To roll back the policies
MSY:
Yes. And in the Lok Sabha we will tell the Prime Minister, the government to
take back the policies. From your medium, we appeal to the Prime Minister, let
this time not come in the Lok Sabha, before that take back the proposal.
PC:
Otherwise you can bring a proposal in the Lok Sabha
MSY:
To bring a proposal, not bring a proposal, or oppose it, is one and the same
thing.
PC:
But you appealed to the Prime Minister that withdraw before the Lok Sabha
session, let that time not come
MSY:
Yes, we will oppose.
PC:
After that he will be responsible for what happens in the Lok Sabha
MSY:
We will oppose, that is why we want them to take back earlier.
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