The Hindu : National : BJP must not cross any boundaries: Gowda

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BJP must not cross any boundaries: Gowda

He hopes the two parties will settle issues

Dehra Dun: With BJP-Janata Dal (Secular) ties in Karnataka hitting roadblocks over the Datta Peeth and Tipu Sultan issues, the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda on Saturday said the BJP should not "cross any boundaries."

"The BJP is bound by its commitment towards the Karnataka Development Front programme, which is the secular agenda of the coalition government," he told reporters here.

He, however, said he hoped wisdom would prevail upon the BJP leaders and all issues settled by a coordination committee of the two parties.

His statement comes in the wake of the BJP's demand for removal of a lesson on Tipu Sultan, 18th century ruler of Mysore, from textbooks in the State and taking out of a ``Shobha Yatra'' during Datta Jayanti celebrations at the Hindu-Muslim shrine considered Datta Peeth at Bababudanagiri in Chikamagalur district.

The Peeth houses the shrine of a Sufi saint and JD (S) leaders fear the yatra could stir communal tension and dent the party's secular credentials.

On the Tipu issue, he said the Sultan was a ``true patriot'' who fought against the British.

Charge against Congress

Mr. Gowda charged the Congress with conspiring to destabilise the H.D. Kumaraswami Government.

He said, ``The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee recently submitted a memorandum to Governor T.N. Chaturvedi demanding that the Kumaraswami-led BJP-JD (S) coalition be dismissed.''

Taking note of the political developments in Jharkhand, he said the increasing tendency of defection among legislators was not a very good sign for politics. ``Constitutional amendment is a must to curb this menace,'' he added. — PTI, UNI

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