The Bharatiya Janata Party has rejected the very idea of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram resigning from his position after accepting moral responsibility for the massacre of CRPF personnel in Dantewada in Chhattisgarh.
Party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy said on Friday: “The BJP does not demand the Home Minister's resignation. It would not agree to this, as it would undoubtedly be hailed as a Maoist victory.”
The Home Minister has been entrusted with the nation's security and “he must not whimper like an injured soldier.”
Mr. Rudy said that at this critical juncture, the country could not afford to lose the “war” against the Maoists.
“While the party understands and appreciates the Home Minister's admission that the buck stops at his table, this is not the time to quarrel over where the ‘buck' stops — at Writers' Building in Kolkata, at some other Chief Minister's office desk, or the North Block desk of Mr. Chidambaram,” Mr. Rudy said.
He added that the country expected statements from the Home Minister to be “inspirational rather than confessional,” and that the party had already stated that it would support any government step to find a lasting solution to the issue. The party expected the Centre's response to be quick and aimed at a “fight to the finish.”
‘Nation comes first'
At the same time, Mr. Rudy raised the question of whether Mr. Chidambaram was getting adequate political support from his own government and party. “If his offer of resignation was because of lack of such support, the Prime Minister must explain this to the country,” he said.
The BJP had decided at its office-bearers' meeting on Thursday that it will not play politics on issues concerning the nation's security. As one party leader put it, “we will stick to our stand — the nation comes first, then the party, and lastly the individual.”
