Cong being sucked into an ordinance quagmire? Allies demand a say

New Delhi: The Congress is still looking for a way out of the mess over the ordinance to protect convicted legislators. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was publicly castigated by party vice president Rahul Gandhi over the ordinance, returned home on Tuesday night determined not to resign.

When he went to pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat on Wednesday morning, Rahul Gandhi was absent, which set tongues wagging in the political circles of the country.

However, the angry Congress 'prince' went to Prime Minister's house before 10 am in the morning. According to insiders, Rahul Gandhi had a cordial talk with Manmohan Singh, but did not apologise for his public outburst.

It led to speculations that Rahul Gandhi is still adamant on his opposition to the Ordinance, which is being dubbed as a tool to protect the convicted politicians. The Congress Core Committee, which met in the morning, is believed to have told the Cabinet to reconsider its stand on the ordinance.

Meanwhile, other UPA constituents have also joined the issue. Samajwadi Party(SP) leader Naresh Agarwal demanded that the allies should be contacted before the government takes the final decision on the withdrawal of the ordinance. He has been joined by the NCP and the National Conference.

DP Tripathi of the NCP feels that any Cabinet decision should be discussed with the allies. The National Conference chief and Union minister Dr Farooq Abdullah also said he will meet the Prime Minister to discuss the crisis. He said, "The whole drama over the ordinance is very unfortunate. We hope for better coordination with the allies in future."

The Prime Minister also met President Pranab Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhawan to discuss the ordinance controversy. However, there has been no official confirmation on what transpired between two leaders.

The Union Cabinet, which is scheduled to meet later in the evening, is expected to take up the issue. According to high level sources, either it will withdraw the ordinance or it may call for a meeting of the UPA allies before formally discarding the controversial move.