The two-year-old alliance between the Janata Party and the BJP, which survived many vicissitudes while sustaining the minority Janata government in Karnataka, came to an end when talks about seat adjustments between the two parties broke down. The two major parties, which fought the recent Lok Sabha elections unitedly on the basis of seat sharing, will now confront each other in the assembly poll in Karnataka, unless the Chief Minister, Rama Krishna Hegde, is able to pull off a last-minute salvage operation when he meets the national president of the BJP, A B Vajpayee, in New Delhi on February 1.

Indo-Pak Ties

The Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, described as a “good first step”, Pakistan President Ziaul Haq’s indication that Islamabad would try the hijackers of the Indian aircraft. Gandhi said Haq had given the first positive indication for normalising Indo-Pak ties.

Zail Singh Irked

President Zail Singh wants all administrative orders issued in Punjab during the term of the Central rule to be issued in the name of the Governor and not in the name of the President. Some of the orders issued by the state government were contrary to his views and caused him embarrassment. But legal experts do not find it feasible.