It is to the credit of the Janata leaders that they have been able to patch up their differences which only a few days ago threatened to tear the party apart. Given the sharpness and bitterness of the conflict between the Prime Minister and the former Union Home Minister, this is no mean achievement. The patch-up would, of course, not have been possible if Mr. Charan Singh had stuck to his earlier stance. But the credit for it goes not to him – after all he need not have precipitated the crisis in the first instance – but to men of goodwill in the party, principally Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, Mr. Biju Patnaik, Mr. George Fernandes and Mr. Madhu Limaye. To say this is not to suggest in any way that Mr. Morarji Desai has been unjustified in taking a tough stand. He has not been. He had been exasperated with Mr. Charan Singh for months and by the time the latter issued the wholly uncalled for “pack of impotent men” statement on June 28, his patience had clearly been exhausted. The former Home Minister had been too patronising – he had time and again claimed to have made Mr. Desai the Prime Minister – and too self-righteous. As such it is understandable that Mr. Desai has resisted pleas by some of the mediators to take Mr. Charan Singh back into the cabinet. In the process he has raised his stature considerably.
There is, however, another aspect of the story which deserves notice. Some of Mr. Charan Singh’s supporters have persuaded him to call off the kisan rally which was to be held on July 17, give up his insistence on stating his side of the conflict between him and the Prune Minister and finally withdraw his resignation from the Janata parliamentary board and national executive on the plea that the fight has shifted from the government to the party and that this calls for patience, cool nerves and a spirit of accommodation. In plain terms, this means that the former Home Minister and his followers will spare no effort to strengthen their position in the party in the forthcoming organizational elections next October. And judging by recent developments it will not be surprising if Mr. Charan Singh or a nominee of his is a candidate for presidentship of the party and if the former Jana Sangh decides to support him. This can lead, on the one hand, to a curtailment of the influence of the erstwhile Congress (O), CFD and young Turks in the Janata and, on the other, to a clash between the ruling party and the government. If it is recalled that it was precisely a similar conflict which led to the split in the Congress in 1969, the need to avoid it becomes evident. But while it is easy to emphasise the need, it is extremely difficult, at least right now, to suggest how it can be met. The Janata leadership has bought time which it must utilize to avoid somehow another collision which, if it occurs, is likely to be far more serious and difficult to manage than the present one. The former Jana Sangh’s role will be particularly crucial. Its leaders will be called upon to show far greater resilience and skill than they have shown so far.