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Kannur: BJP for Centre’s intervention

KOCHI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Venkaiah Naidu has urged the Union government to deploy Central forces in the violence-ridden Kannur district.

Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, he said Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha L.K. Advani had spoken to Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil and sought the Centre’s intervention.

Mr. Venkaiah Naidu alleged that Kannur was witnessing State-sponsored terrorism. The local police were silent spectators to the hooliganism. He said the State Home Minister should have rushed to the trouble-torn areas to curb the barbarian killings.

“The CPI(M) in Kerala seems to be in the habit of resorting to brutal killings of political opponents. If the BJP adopts similar tactics in BJP-ruled States, what will be the fate of Marxists,” he asked. A (BJP) parliamentary delegation would be sent to Kannur to study the situation, he said.

Asked whether there was a possibility for sending Central forces to Kannur, he replied that “they (the Centre and the State government) are hand in glove.” To another question on BJP’s role in the violence in Kannur, he said it was for the State government to take action against all offenders.

Referring to the controversy over the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal, he said the Congress and the Prime Minister had miserably failed in handling the issue. He reiterated that the nuclear deal in its present form was not acceptable to the BJP. The party was opposing the deal as it was against the sovereignty of the country. “We are not anti-America. Better ties do not mean surrendering our sovereignty,” he said.

Pointing out that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had opposed nuclear tests on the floor of Parliament, the BJP leader wondered how could he champion the cause of it now. He alleged that the Congress and the CPI(M) were playing hide and seek over the deal.

On the issue of price rise, Mr. Venkaiah Naidu said the prices of all commodities were increasing. He alleged that the United Progressive Alliance government at the Centre was insensitive to the suffering of the people.

On the farm loan waiver scheme announced by the Union government, he said it was a half-hearted move. It was not clear as to how to raise the revenue for the scheme. The present government may not be there after a few months. “You make promises and are we (the next government) to take care of it,” he asked. Out of the nine States that went to the polls of late, the Congress had lost all except one.

BJP State president P.K. Krishna Das, general secretary A.N. Radhakrishnan, former president P.S. Sreedharan Pillai and Ernakulam district president Nedumbassery Ravi were among those present.

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