By Gail Alexander

A group of 30-plus well-known Hindu community members met yesterday with UNC founder Basdeo Panday to discuss the strife-torn UNC and appeal to him to endorse estranged UNC political leader Winston Dookeran to lead the party and unite it.

The 3 pm meeting, chaired by surgeon Dr Vijay Naraynsingh, included Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha general secretary Satnarayan Maharaj, Gopio’s Devant Maharaj, Hindu Women’s Group leader Kamla Tewarie, Deokeenanan Sharma of Divali Nagar, Ravi-Ji, Swami Prakash Nanan, SWHA heads and representatives of Hindu youth groups, attendees confirmed.

However, the officials said Panday did not agree to endorse Dookeran since he said he had no official position in the party.

The groups subsequently also met with Dookeran in a separate meeting yesterday.

Several of those present asked Dookeran to form his own party, members confirmed.

Issues for discussion included how to keep the party from splintering further, members said.

At yesterday’s meeting, members said the leaders appealed to Panday to fix the “mess.”

“They asked him to support Dookeran and told him the community was suffering discrimination and suppression by the PNM,” one said.

“Young Hindu officials particularly stood up to Panday. Panday was questioned almost as if he was in court,” they added.

Commenting after the two-hour meeting, Panday said: “The organisers had not mentioned whether Mr Dookeran would be there or, it seems, they had some strategy.

“They had views to express and they expressed them.

“I asked the chairman for a list of the names of the persons present, who they represented and precise statements of what they were suggesting.

“I’d like to know what organisations they were from and if, in fact, they were really speaking on behalf of those organisations.”

Panday said Naraynsingh, for instance, did not say on whose behalf he was appearing.

“So I’m trying to find out who they are representing to be able to evaluate the advice which I suspect they will give...I don’t know on whose authority it was being done,” he added

Members of the Hindu groups said they had recently established the committee to “deal with the crisis” in the UNC.

They said Panday was called on Wednesday by a member and invited to the meeting.

Dookeran’s faction has been strongly supported by the SDMS.

Last month, SDMS general secretary Sat Maharaj said he had known Dookeran many years and admires him.

Maharaj said he felt T&T needs an infusion of new young political blood.

On Wednesday, a member of the Hindu team was also to have held discussions with Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar to try to sway her to the Dookeran side, they added.

Yesterday’s meeting of the Hindu groups took place as the UNC prepared for its National Assembly tomorrow when a motion of no-confidence against Dookeran is on the agenda. The assembly is dedicated to Panday as UNC founder.

Panday sought a postponement of similar motions at recent UNC meetings until he held talks with Dookeran on unifying the party.

But yesterday, sources said no headway had been made on this so far and the no- confidence motion stands unless Panday calls for another postponement at tomorrow’s assembly.

Panday said yesterday that he wrote Dookeran to ascertain exactly what positions Dookeran holds since this was not made clear at their meeting.

Asked if he would seek another postponement of the motion at tomorrow’s meeting, Panday said:

“I don’t know what will happen to that motion.”

On word from the Dookeran camp that the faction is currently consolidating its position before Dookeran’s team decides if to launch their own party by month-end, member Gary Griffith said it was not a matter of “if” Dookeran would form his own party, but “when.”

Griffith said: “We held meetings in the western peninsula for the past four weeks and the overwhelming consensus is people want Winston to launch his own party.

“We met with UNC, and PNM supporters, businessmen, youths 18 to 25 and the common call was they’re fed up of PNM and have no confidence in UNC and if Winston united with Panday and the UNC, these people in west Trinidad wouldn’t support him.”

“They feel Panday will taint his image and that any type of unification with UNC will be cosmetic and won’t last,” Griffith added.

©2005-2006 Trinidad Publishing Company Limited

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