The Hindu : Karnataka News : BJP ready to shun criminals: Vajpayee

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 09, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

BJP ready to shun criminals: Vajpayee

By Our Special Correspondent

H.N. Ananth Kumar (left), BJP State unit president, the former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Uma Bharti, the BJP President, Venkaiah Naidu, and the former Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, greet the crowd at a `victory rally' in Bangalore on Wednesday. — Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash

BANGALORE, SEPT. 8. The former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajapyee, said on Wednesday that the Bharatiya Janata Party would avoid nominating criminal elements in the elections to the Lok Sabha and the Legislative Assemblies. At the same time, he challenged the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government to drop tainted ministers. The Congress had not been supporting the BJP in its efforts to keep criminals out of legislative bodies, he said.

Mr. Vajpayee was addressing a "victory rally" held in celebration of the release of the party leader, Uma Bharti, from the jail following the State Government's decision to withdraw the criminal case against her.

Mr. Vajpayee said there was no place for "tainted ministers" and criminals in a democracy. The BJP was ready to support steps to prevent criminals from entering the Lok Sabha and Legislative assemblies but the ruling Congress should extend its hand. The Congress had not been listening to the BJP's demand for dropping ministers facing prosecution for criminal acts, from the Union Council of Ministers.

There was a talk that the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, would call a meeting to discuss the issue of "tainted" ministers but that had not happened.

Referring to the economic policies of the UPA Government, he said during the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) rule, the GDP growth rate was 8 per cent and but now the inflation was 8 per cent. During his rule, the county had surplus foreign exchange. The UPA Government's decision to increase the prices of petroleum and diesel was unwarranted, he said.

The BJP did not oppose the policies just for the sake of opposition. The increase in prices had affected the lives of the common people, he said.

The former Prime Minister expressed concern over the increase in infiltration of terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir from Pakistan.

"Terrorism is a challenge to humanity. We should make a collective effort to defeat it," he said and recalled the September 11 attack on the World Trade Centre in the U.S. three years ago.

Star attraction

Braving rain, a large number of people who had gathered at the venue heard Ms. Bharti, who equated the Congress leaders with Mohammed Ali Jinnah, who propagated the two-nation theory and founded Pakistan.

"Jinnah considered Mahatma Gandhi as a leader of the Hindus, not of the whole country. Similarly, he (Jinnah) considered the tri-colour as a flag of the Hindus. The Congress has the same mindset now," Ms. Bharti said.

Taking a dig at the UPA constituents, she said the Union Minister for Railways, Lalu Prasad Yadav, was ready to accept the Congress President, Sonia Gandhi, as Prime Minister but not the BJP forming the Government.

Urging the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and the Chief Minister, Dharam Singh, to act according to their own wisdom, Ms. Bharti alleged that the Congress President had been acting as a remote control at the Centre and in the State.

The Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, B.S. Yediyurappa, said the Dharam Singh Government had failed to deliver the goods.

The former Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, the former Chief Minister, S. Bangarappa, and the BJP National President, Venkaiah Naidu, spoke.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka