The Hindu : National : BJP poser on Satyagraha centenary

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Friday, Jan 19, 2007
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National

BJP poser on Satyagraha centenary

Special Correspondent

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NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party has alleged misuse of government machinery for arrangements being made for organising the Mahatma Gandhi Satyagraha Centenary International Conference by the Congress party from January 29.

The party spokesperson, Prakash Javadekar, said here on Thursday that if it was wholly a party function then the BJP had no objection to not being invited as a participant.

But, if the Government was involved in any way — which it said was the case — then it must invite the main opposition party and other political parties also.

Even though the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs clarified that it had nothing to do with the ongoing plans for the conference in which several heads of state and Nobel laureates are expected to participate — except that there could be some bilateral meetings on the sidelines — the BJP said SMS messages have gone from the Ministry in this connection and this showed that "government machinery was being misused."

Mr. Javadekar also said that the Congress needed to learn lessons on satyagraha and that it was the BJP which had used this as a political weapon during the Emergency when democracy was threatened.

"We will use satyagraha as a weapon again if any shadow is allowed to be cast on democracy or secularism," Mr. Javadekar said.

`Congress withdrawal a drama'

He also described the Congress withdrawal of support from the Mulayam Singh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh as a "drama" that had fooled no one.

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