ASK any member of the United Front steering committee, and he'll tell you that from May 28, when Deve Gowda was invited to form the Government, till June 1, when he was sworn in, "life was hell". Already shaken by the CPI(M)'S refusal to join the Government, they knew that if the regional parties followed suit, their great Indian experiment in coalition politics would be a damp squib.
Enter, V.P. Singh. The former prime minister had been in touch with the leadership of the regional parties since the poll results were declared. But he went into overdrive in the crucial four days, speaking to Chief Ministers M. Karunanidhi and P.K. Mah-anta on the telephone, and concentrating his energies on Chandrababu Naidu, G.K. Moopanaar and Murasoli Maran in the steering committee meetings.
His arguments were simple. First, if the regional parties did not join the Government because of Congress support it would be politically naive of them, as the Congress would be an aggresive backseat driver and they too would be apportioned blame as they were a part of the coalition. Secondly, and this seems to have been the clincher, by participating in the government they could directly influence the course of Centre-state relations. Thirdly, the specific proposals to erase doubts—referring the Cauvery dispute to the courts for arbitration to convince the DMK, the continuance of the economic reforms to win over the TMC and the 'no objection certificate' to Naidu for his plans to float the Federal Front as a pressure group.
On May 31, at the steering committee meet in the afternoon that continued for over three hours at which Karunanidhi, Mahanta, Naidu and Moopanar were present, the regional parties let themsleves be convinced. But for them, it was not a matter of political compulsion. The important thing was V.P. Singh, the man advancing these arguments. "Is this your advice?" Karunanidhi asked. "Yes, and I ask you to accept with folded hands," replied Singh. And that was that. Mahanta too agreed only because "V.P. Singh was insistent". Moopanar put the issue in perspective when he light-heartedly threatened to "get up and leave" when Singh, who arrived late for the press conference held to announce the decision, refused to sit on the podium with the regional leaders. Singh quickly obliged, the last thing he wanted was all his good work to be undone.
