The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : `UPA Government has derailed security'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jul 17, 2006

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

`UPA Government has derailed security'

Staff Reporter

It has made people vulnerable to attacks: Jaswant Singh

BANGALORE: "Govern or Get Out" was the call made by the Bharatiya Janata Party to the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government, which, they said, had derailed the internal security and foreign policy agenda put in place by the National Democratic Alliance Government, and the consequences were being borne by millions of citizens who were vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

Former External Affairs Minister and BJP MP Jaswant Singh, who launched the anti-terrorism day in the city as part of the BJP's nation-wide programme over the weekend, said the intention was to "shake the Government out of its appalling complacency when the country is faced with the challenge from terrorist attacks".

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had, in fact, been silent for two whole days after the July 11 serial bomb blasts that killed more than 200 commuters in Mumbai, after which he had literally paid lip service, he said.

In a strong message that minced no words, Mr. Jaswant Singh said the UPA Government should "stop selling the country for votes". He warned that India's lack of a strong foreign policy could cost the country dear. Everywhere from Korea to Iran and Iraq, and Palestine, strife was the common thread running through the entire continent of Asia, and "this should tell us something". "Today NATO is present in Afghanistan, tomorrow, if they come to Nepal what will be our move? We have gradually moved away from clear-cut policy in dealing with our neighbours, and we cannot afford to outsource our foreign policy to an organisation that is against India's interests," Mr. Jaswant Singh said.

Recently, all the people in Britain marked the first anniversary of bomb blasts in London's underground, which had claimed several lives. In India, no one had a sense of history. "Do you remember the exact date of the attack on IISc? Or the attack on Ayodhya and on Varanasi or Akshardham?" he asked.

Answering the question himself, Mr. Jaswant Singh said this Government, whose first move after coming to power was to rescind POTA (Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act), had forgotten that each tragedy was not simply a count of corpses.

Senior BJP leader M. Venkaiah Naidu said ever since the UPA Government took over, terrorists of all hues were indulging in a free-for-all, and all the Government seemed able to do was to offer "condolence to the dead and compensation to the survivors". The Deve Gowda-led Government or even the I.K. Gujral Government was far more effective than this one, he said.

BJP national general secretary H.N. Ananth Kumar and State BJP president D.V. Sadananda Gowda spoke.

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

Karnataka