Tuesday, Oct 19, 2004
Tuesday, Oct 19, 2004 |
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By Our Special Correspondent
MUMBAI, OCT. 18. The Shiv Sena leader, Bal Thackeray, today lashed out at the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party's "vote bank" politics and rued that the saffron alliance lost the elections because of block voting by Muslims and "outsiders," against it. Writing in the Sena mouthpiece, Saamna, Mr. Thackeray launched a vicious attack on Muslims, apart from the Congress-NCP, and renewed the bogey of "Islamic" threat.
`Vote bank politics'
Votes of Muslims and "outsiders" went against the Sena-BJP alliance, he said, explaining the situation by using a rather unprintable colloquial saying. He warned that this "vote bank" politics would prove rather costly for the State and the country. "Today the country is in grave danger from Muslims who are presenting a united front. Though there are a `few good Muslims,' the bulk of them are Bangladeshis and Islamic fundamentalists, who are very dangerous," he said.
`Danger from Islam'
The Congress-NCP was looking at nurturing these vote banks and not taking into account the interests of the nation, he said and warned of "danger from Islam." In the event of "the Islamic threat" coming true, Ms. Sonia Gandhi would escape to Italy with her two children, he said. Victory or defeat is normal in an election, he said and cited the example of Indira Gandhi. "In the earlier days, people were happy in their own States. Now, the situation is alarming and every sector has become rotten. ``The central leadership is very weak and in every State, apart from natural drought, there is also bankruptcy of ideas and thought," he said.
`They did nothing'
In Maharashtra, in the last five years, the ruling government had neither done anything nor taken any new initiatives. Yet people re-elected them. "Though the Congress has got the votes, it has not won the hearts of people," he added.
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