The Hindu : BJP reiterates its stand on Ernakulam debacle

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 21, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

BJP reiterates its stand on Ernakulam debacle

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI, JAN. 20. The State president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), P.S. Sreedharan Pillai, reiterated today that his party's debacle in the November byelection to the Ernakulam Lok Sabha constituency was not because of diversion of votes. Instead, it was organisational weaknesses and failure at the grassroots level leadership that led to the defeat of the party's candidate.

Addressing a press conference here, he said the committee headed by P.D. Purushothaman had ruled out any vote diversion against the party-backed candidate, Viswanatha Menon. Mr. Pillai described reports to the contrary as planted by the party's enemies in State politics. The committee had also found that Mr. Menon's candidature had helped the party.

However, he said, Mr. Menon's anti-Hindutva statements prior to the polls had helped erode votes. At the organisational level, the party just got 12 days for its campaign and this was inadequate. The committee had suggested strengthening of the organisational aspects, he said.

The State unit of the party would take out marches to district headquarters all over Kerala on February 3 demanding that the education portfolio be taken away from the Muslim League. The Muslim League had "communalised and commercialised" every government activity in the State. He cited the latest scandal involving the new B.Ed. colleges as an example.

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