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PM lambastes Congress alliance with Jaya, Laloo

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today lashed out at the Congress's alliances with the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu and the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar, calling them "unholy and opportunistic".

Addressing a well-attended public meeting in sleepy Medak town in Andhra Pradesh, Vajpayee said that though there was no ideological basis for an alliance among the three parties, they had come together to topple his duly elected government and capture power.

He ridiculed the Congress for aligning with the two parties after having called Jayalalitha and Laloo Prasad Yadav corrupt.

He said that though the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition had the people's mandate for a full five-year term, the Congress did not accept defeat and conspired with other parties to topple it within 13 months.

Vajpayee said he had been in the opposition for several decades and seen many prime ministers from Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru right down to Inder Kumar Gujral, but had never tried to topple an elected government. But it has become a habit with the Congress to topple elected governments both at the Centre and in the states, he said, citing the ouster of the N T Rama Rao government in Andhra Pradesh in the early 1980s as an instance.

He said the BJP is keen to enact a law to provide 33 per cent reservation for women in all elected bodies, and accused the Congress and other opposition parties of blocking it.

Underlining the need for a strong, stable government at the Centre for taking "bold decisions", he said the army had given Pakistan a fitting reply by driving away its intruders in Kargil.

Though India had faced such situations twice earlier, this was the first time our soldiers not only beat back the intruders but also freed the territory occupied by them, he claimed.

On the other hand, the Congress, when it was in power, had thrown away the gains made by the army. He recalled how the Haji Pir pass was occupied and 90,000 Pakistan soldiers were taken prisoner in 1971, only to be handed back.

Paying glowing tributes to the country's scientists, the prime minister acknowledged that it was because of their efforts that the country now possesses missiles like Agni-II and is counted among the stronger countries of the world.

Listing the developmental schemes launched by his government, Vajpayee said food production has doubled and farmers are now assured of remunerative prices. The country is in a position to even export food grains, he said.

The economy, which was in the doldrums, has been put back on the rails and inflation has been checked, he said.

Vajpayee lauded the Andhra Pradesh government's efforts to improve the standards of living of the common people through information technology and mentioned Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's pet 'Janmabhoomi' scheme in this regard. Naidu's Telugu Desam Party has an electoral alliance with the BJP.

Vajpayee assured the people that if the BJP was voted back to power, schemes to supply the waters of the Krishna to the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad and the Godavari for irrigation in Telangana would be cleared.

He said the Congress had done precious little for the poor during its 40-year rule. There was no equitable development and even basic needs like drinking water were not provided in many villages. The BJP is determined to provide a stable and honest government that will ensure justice to all sections of the people, he said.

Vajpayee dismissed the opposition propaganda that the BJP is anti-minority and said that barring a few minor incidents, the country was by and large free from communal tension during his rule.

He repeatedly exhorted the people to exercise their franchise, saying each vote is precious, and citing his government's defeat in the Lok Sabha by just one vote.

A huge crowd, including a large number of women, thronged the sprawling grounds of the famous Medak church despite the hot sun to hear Vajpayee who spoke in chaste Hindi. Hordes of rural folk in traditional attire were seen trekking to the ground even after the prime minister had left. The town wore a festive look with the yellow and saffron flags and festoons of the TDP and the BJP fluttering everywhere.

Ch Vidyasagar Rao, state BJP president, A Narendra, the party's candidate for the Medak Lok Sabha seat, Karanam Ramachandra Rao, M Rajaiah and Chandrasekhar, the TDP's candidates for the assembly segments, and Telugu film comedian Babu Mohan were present.

Vajpayee later left for Bellary in neighbouring Karnataka to campaign for Sushma Swaraj, who is pitted against Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

UNI

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