15 Nov 2002
CONG POOHPOOHS PM'S APPEAL TO
VHP
From Jal Khambata
NEW DELHI: The
Congress on Friday pooh poohed the Prime Minister's appeal to the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to honour the Election Commission's ban
on its proposed "Yatra", pointing out that it exposes "the
dichotomy, the contradiction" as he and his BJP have taken "180
degree opposite stand."
Party spokesman Abhishek Singhavi
said "it is very important for the party or the PM to explain"
this contradiction as Atal Bihari Vajpayee is endorsing the Election
Commission's decision to ban the "Yatra" while his party is
vocally supporting the same "Yatra"
The Congress is,
of course, happy with the Prime Minister's statement, Singhavi said
while pointing out that "it is amusing if not laughable the
duality between the ruling party and its manifestations."
ANOTHER
RALLY: Asked about yet another "Yatra" being undertaken in
Gujarat by former Union Minister Satpal Maharaj of Congress from this
Sunday just when VHP's "Yatra" had been banned, Singhavi
said nobody is calling for a blanket ban on political or religious
yatra. He also stressed that Satpal Maharaj's "Yatra" being
organised by a trust is for "sadbhavna" (amity) and not for
dividing the people on religious or any other grounds.
"But
if the Election Commission finds he is indulging in anything that
surcharges, the Congress will be first to stop him," Singhavi
said.
He said the VHP's threat to carry out the "Yatra"
despite the ban was the "most unfortunate blatant disregard and
proclaimed defiance of the law to convey that as far as VHP is
concerned, the law is below its foot."
Singhavi pointed
out that the "Yatra" was most unfortunate since when
Gujarat was settling down after the communal strife and getting ready
for the polls. deliberate attempt is being made to use religion in
politics.
"Why ths Yatra now, few weeks before polls? You
do not have to search for purposes or motives. Who will believe it to
be a normal religious activity or normal political campaign,"
Singhavi asked, pointing out that the objective is crystal-clear:
"Inject poison in atmosphere, vitiate atmosphere, destroy and
not heal the wounds and use it for political purposes."
BJP
ACCUSES CONG: BJP spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, however, blasted the
Congress for trying to show the ban on VHP as its own victory and
warned that such claims would prove suicidal. He reminded the
Congress that similar acts of the Congress which were not far-sighted
in Uttar Pradesh had made it to suffer till today.
He said
since after the Godhra train burning, the Congress had been taking
provocative postures to vitiate the atmosphere not only in Gujarat
but in rest of India though it was heartening that the people
defeated their attempts.
Naqvi said the BJP did not want to
make use of religion in the elections as its priority is that the
political activities should be carried out in an atmosphere of
"sadbhav, shanti and bhaichara." The BJP wants the Gujarat
elections to be completed in a fear-free atmpshere (bhay mukt
mahaul). END