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Tuesday, Aug 19, 2008
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BJP demands corrective steps

Special Correspondent

Advani, Rajnath to address rally in Jammu on August 25

L.K.Advani

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday demanded that the government take “suitable corrective measures” to restore normality and peace in Jammu and Kashmir.

It announced its decision to continue the Jammu agitation through a nationwide ‘Jammu Kashmir bachao’ programme on August 21.

In a four-page resolution, the BJP also appealed to “nationalist elements” in the Kashmir valley “to speak firmly against the voice of secession, which is only being encouraged by forces across the border.”

The crisis in Jammu and Kashmir was the major subject of a two-and-a-half-hour meeting of BJP office-bearers chaired by party president Rajnath Singh here. Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha L.K. Advani was present. Both Mr. Singh and Mr. Advani will be addressing a rally in Jammu on August 25, to be organised by the Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti that has been spearheading the Jammu agitation, it was announced later.

Besides, Mr. Advani will resume his ‘sankalp yatra’ addressing meetings throughout the country later in September. Party spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad quoted Mr. Singh as having told BJP functionaries that India had not responded in the manner expected to Pakistan’s “direct interference” in India’s affairs when it earlier passed a resolution in its Assembly on the developments in Jammu and Kashmir.

“We condemn this. We shall not tolerate this interference,” he is reported to have said.

He added that Pakistan’s encouragement of terrorism and interference in India’s internal matters and confidence-building measures in dialogue cannot go hand-in-hand.

Mr. Advani told his partymen that the Manmohan Singh government had shown ineptitude in handling different issues. On Kashmir, it was responsible for creating the image of India under siege. The BJP also said that Congress had a “proven history” of mishandling Kashmir affairs.

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