The leader of the 11-member BJP group in the state assembly, education minister Ram Bilas Sharma, today informed governor Mahavir Prasad that his party was withdrawing from the coalition with Bansi Lal's Haryana Vikas Party (HVP) with which it had shared power for over three years.

The BJP action has reduced the Bansi Lal government to a minority in a house of 90 members as HVP has only 35 members. While Om Parkash Chautala's Haryana Lok Dal has 22 members in the house, the Congress has 12 members, besides 10 independents.

While the Congress has said it would try to prevent formation of a government by Chautala-BJP combine, BJP has said it would try that a non-Congress government assumed power in the state.

BJP vice-president JP Mathur told newspersons here that the decision to withdraw support to the Bansi Lal government was taken by the party'sparliamentary board a few days ago following request from the state unit.

The party unit, he said, had been stressing that it was no use staying in the Bansi Lal government as it was not able to fulfil the urges and aspirations of the people. The parliamentary board, therefore, authorised vice-president in charge of the state, Krishan Lal Sharma, to take a decision on the timing of the withdrawal of support.

Mathur said his party would try to form a non-Congress government in the state but would not indulge in horsetrading or unscrupulous means to do so.

Replying to a question, he said it was for the governor to decide whether to allow Bansi Lal to continue as caretaker chief minister or take any other decision according to the constitution.

The BJP action did not come as a surprise as it was known for quite some time that the party was trying to pull out of the coalition as Chautala was pressing for it. He had made it known that it would be difficult for him to stay in the National DemocraticAlliance in which VHP was also a constituent.

Apart from the growing estrangement between the state BJP leadership and Bansil Lal, Chautala's support to the Vajpayee government during the vote of confidence also prompted today's action. Chautala had four members in the dissolved house.

The Congress, meanwhile, criticised the BJP for withdrawing support to the Bansi Lal government. It showed that the party was not a trustworthy ally, party general secretary Pranab Mukherjee said.