The Hindu : BJP victory temporary: Paswan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 24, 2002

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National

BJP victory temporary: Paswan

By Our Staff Correspondent

PATNA Dec. 23. The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president, Ram Vilas Paswan, today expressed his concern over what he called the BJP's conspiracy to extend its Gujarat experiment to other parts of the country during the coming Assembly elections and in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls.

Mr. Paswan said the BJP had embarked on a dangerous course. "The Gujarat victory is temporary. The coming elections will set the tone for the downfall of the Atal Behari Vajpayee Government."

The BJP's desperation could be gauged from the fact that "Mr. Vajpayee too had worked hand in glove with the other constituents of the Sangh Parivar in carrying out the conspiracy of vitiating the atmosphere and evoking communal passions among the voters". And due to this reason he did not consider the outcome as "the true verdict of the voters".

The former Union Minister held the Congress responsible for the failure of the Opposition in preventing the return of Narendra Modi to power and lashed out at it for undertaking a "soft-Hindutva approach".

He hoped that the Congress would learn a lesson and take the initiative to form a front to counter the National Democratic Alliance.

Mr. Paswan said the Congress needed to make its stand clear in Uttar Pradesh by opposing the Bahujan Samaj Party-led government and forcing the Governor to summon the Assembly and direct the Chief Minister, Mayawati, to seek a vote of confidence. "The Mayawati Government has been reduced to a minority and she is indulging in all the tricks of the trade to remain in power."

He also demanded the resignation of the Railway Minister, Nitish Kumar, in the wake of the train accident in Andhra Pradesh.

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