NEW DELHI, 24 May 2005 — The Bihar Assembly was dissolved yesterday with President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, away in Moscow, accepting a recommendation to this effect by the Union Cabinet, which met here late Sunday. This will pave the way for fresh elections in the eastern Indian state and the Election Commission (EC) will decide the new poll dates.

“Once the house is dissolved, the EC has to decide when elections will take place,” Home Minister Shivraj Patil told reporters adding the decision to dissolve the assembly, which was kept under suspended animation, was taken to prevent “horse-trading”.

He said Bihar Gov. Buta Singh, in his report to the government, had said that “unconstitutional and illegal steps were being taken by political parties to win over legislators”.

“Since the situation was worsening in the state, the Union Cabinet accepted governor’s recommendations and recommended dissolution of the assembly to the president, who is away in Moscow. The president approved the Cabinet’s decision,” he said.

Patil said the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were trying to nullify the fractured February verdict by trying to break up Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) which had 29 legislators.

Over a dozen LJP legislators were trying to break away and throw their weight behind the JD-U led by Nitish Kumar to form a government.

Bihar, one of India’s politically most crucial states, was brought under federal rule in February after feuding parties failed to form a majority from an inconclusive state poll.

The decision to dissolve the house immediately triggered political tensions as the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) announced two days of nationwide protests and blasted the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

In Bihar, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav welcomed the move.

Lalu said that Paswan should have realized he was an ally in the UPA coalition government at the center.

“His party is dead, I remember he used to say that he held the key to forming the government in Bihar, well his legislators ran away with the key. All this because of Paswan’s short sightedness.”

Paswan, the biggest loser of the Bihar imbroglio, appeared confused. It was his adamant refusal to team up with the RJD, which failed to retain its majority in the house that prevented a government from taking office.

Eventually, realizing the futility of allowing the uncertainty to persist, Paswan made a climb down a week ago and said he would prop up an RJD government if a Muslim were made chief minister. In the meantime, his own legislators deserted him to join hands with the NDA.

The Communist party of India (CPI) hailed center’s move. Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader Abani Roy said, “It was better for Bihar to go in for fresh elections.”

However, a furious BJP slammed the dissolution said it will go to the courts in protest against the dissolution of the assembly.

“This is a shameless act and this will lead to the return of Lalu-Rabri Raj,” BJP’s Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu said, referring to Lalu’s wife and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi.

The NDA in Bihar has called for a statewide shutdown today to protest the dissolution of the assembly. BJP JD-U leaders met here yesterday to decide their future course of action.

BJP Vice President Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters that the strike would be a historic one because people all across the state were angry with the dissolution, which signals fresh elections just four months after the last polls.

He said the people of Bihar would not forgive the Congress, the RJD and the LJP for thrusting another election on them.

“There is little doubt that the recommendation of dissolution of assembly was taken by the center under pressure Paswan and Lalu to prevent JD-U leader Nitish Kumar from forming a government in the state,” Modi claimed.

The NDA will also demand that the center recall the governor for his role in the dissolution of the assembly.

Meanwhile, Bihar was put on high alert and security was further tightened yesterday in view of the NDA’s strike today.

Around 50 companies of central paramilitary forces have been deployed at vital installations for assisting the local administration in maintaining law and order, sources said.