The Hindu : Front Page : Nepal as a secular state, a negative development: BJP

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Tuesday, Jun 03, 2008
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Nepal as a secular state, a negative development: BJP

Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI: The declaration of Nepal as a secular state is a “negative development,” but the end of monarchy in what was till recently the world’s only Hindu kingdom is the result of the “wishes of the people,” says the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Releasing the party’s seven-page foreign policy resolution here on Monday, the former External Affairs Minister, Jaswant Singh, clarified its views in response to questions.

Clearly, the BJP did not think that the recent election gave the Communist Party of Nepal(Maoists) any mandate, although it expressed its “satisfaction” with the poll. It said the CPN(M) needed to be restrained in its conduct and utterances “as they had only about a third of the popular vote, and that too, obtained through intimidation.”

As for abolition of monarchy, Mr. Singh said, “It is for the people of Nepal to decide not to have a monarchy.”Was the BJP happy about Nepal becoming a secular state? He said: “As an Indian and a believer in ‘sanatan dharma’ [Hinduism], I feel diminished. … There are four ‘dhams’ [pilgrimage centres] in India and the fifth, Pashupati Nath, is in Nepal. There is nothing more secular than ‘sanatan dharma’. … This is a negative development [in Nepal].”

The BJP resolution charged the UPA government with dereliction of duty and violation of the oath of office to safeguard the country’s interests. It said India’s relations with its neighbours, including China, had worsened; with Russia the ties had been allowed to stagnate; and with the United States, the UPA government’s “maladroit handling of matters” reduced the relationship to a single issue — the nuclear deal.

Mr. Singh demanded that the government “stop the charade” on the nuclear deal and “take a call.” The Congress should not waste its time pleading with the BJP to support the deal. Instead, it should put the UPA house in order.

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