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Congress assails Centre's 'flip-flop'

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, FEB. 14. The Congress said today that the "flip-flop" of the Vajpayee Government in regard to its decision on whether or not to send the Indian cricket team to Pakistan was "most deplorable."

For the last four days, the nation had no answer at all as to whether the cricket team would go to Pakistan for the test and the one-day international series, the party spokesperson, Abhishek Singhvi said here. "In his usual style, the Prime Minister has maintained `maunvrat' [vow of silence] till today. It is an amazing and fantastic example of cross-border terrorism between North Block and South Block [which house the offices of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Prime Minister]."

Mr. Singhvi said the Home Ministry had clearly indicated that the tour would not go on, with the ruling party functionaries giving reasons why the tour should not take place, which ranged from "semi-serious to comic." In sports, especially cricket, the nation was entitled not to have "political googlies," and what was required was a "clear, definite and prompt stand" whether or not the team should play in Pakistan. He charged the Vajpayee Government with repeatedly politicising issues such as education and sports.

On the Bharatiya Janata Party's allegations based on the memoirs of the former Cabinet Secretary, B.G. Deshmukh, he said the BJP should take into account what Mr. Deshmukh said today.

Citing Mr. Deshmukh's statement that he had been quoted out of context [by the BJP] for political purpose with biased political timing in mind, Mr. Singhvi said "it was astonishing" how the BJP choose to make it a political issue. If the party was so concerned about national security why had it not talked about the incident since Mr. Deshmukh said he had written about it in an article in 1998.

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