Congress for CMs’ meet with Atal to resolve SSP

By Our Special Correspondent
Vadodara, June 10


The state Congress on Saturday demanded that Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee should convene a meeting of chief ministers of the four states Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharasthra to resolve the Sardar Sorvar Project issue. The state Congress held BJP responsible for the delay of the SSP.

While addressing a party convention, state Congress president C.D. Patel said that the state Congress unit wanted Prime Minister to convene a meeting of chief ministers of the participatory states. Mr Patel and Opposition leader in state Assembly Amarsinh Chaudhary criticised Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee for having backed out on a poll promise. Mr Patel said that the Prime Minister had promised to convene a meeting of chief ministers of the four states and sort out the Narmada issue on the lines of the Cauvery issue.

Although the leaders did not commit on whether they would persuade Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh to cooperate in the issue, Mr Chaudhary said that if the BJP wants they are ready to organise a meeting with Mr Singh. The leaders expressed surprise that chief minister Keshubhai Patel so far had not taken any initiative to hold a meeting with his Madhya Pradesh counterpart.

Mr. Chaudhary said that the BJP was not serious about the case filed in the Supreme Court during Suresh Mehta’s tenure as the chief minister of Gujarat. The Opposition leader said that the option of out of court settlement should be tried.

Earlier, taking up the issue at the convention, former Union Minister and wife of late Chief Minister Chimanbhai Patel Dr. Urmila Patel, lamented that the work on the dam site could not be carried out for five years. “During its tenure the BJP has only succeeded to increase the dam height by five meters,” Dr. Patel remarked.