The Hindu : National : Vaghela defends Governor's decision

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Monday, Mar 07, 2005

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National

Vaghela defends Governor's decision

By Our Staff Reporter

COIMBATORE, MARCH 6. The Union Minister for Textiles, Shankarsinh Vaghela, today accused the former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and the former Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, of having shown "scant regard for the feelings" of the former President, K.R. Narayanan, on the Gujarat riots.

Mr. Vaghela told presspersons here that Mr. Vajpayee and Mr. Advani had not responded positively to Mr. Narayanan's feelings on the communal riots. The riots were an "election-oriented episode" and the disregard for the President's feelings "showed the real intention of the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the Chief Minister [Narendra Modi]."

On the swearing in of the Jharkhand Mukthi Morcha leader, Shibu Soren, as Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Mr. Vaghela defended the decision of the Governor, Syed Sibtey Razi, saying that in a democratic system such decisions were forced by the fractured mandate given by the people.

He said the Governor had done the "right thing" without favouring any party and that the BJP did not have the moral right to stake claim for forming a government as it did not have the majority.

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