Interlinked Agrarian Credit Markets in Punjab-Exploitative, Yet Growing

and the Janata Dal together which in any case rests more on the willingness of the latter than the mediating powers of the CPI(M). The JD which has been trying to gain a foothold in UP realises that it can do so mainly at the expense of Mulayam Singh. It has no new radical plank to offer the much trumpeted entry of Ram Vilas Paswan in UP to take the dalits away from the BSP through his Dalit Sena could not succeed - and its social base is the same as that of the Samajwadi Party. So even if there is an alliance, it would be based on a long period of "arm twisting' and 'strength testing' where the equation between the JD and Mulayam Singh would keep changing. The JD at present is keen on playing the BSP card in ordertoeffectMulayam's submission before an understanding becomes inevitable.