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Ram temple could lead to country's disintegration, warns Deve Gowda

Former prime minister H D Deve Gowda today warned that the country would disintegrate if Prime Minister A B Vajpayee failed to check the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Talking to newspersons in Bangalore, he said if the Vishwa Hindu Parishad failed to give up the temple construction on its own, the Centre should ensure that the temple did not come up at the disputed site.

He said the BJP government could not afford to send wrong signals at a time when the country was faced with the challenging task of meeting the sanctions imposed by the United States and other following the nuclear tests. The BJP's allies in the government should realise this and ensure that the national agenda of the government was implemented, he added.

Asked whether he would seek a ban on the VHP and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, which asserted that the temple would be constructed at the disputed site, he said he would not make any such demand. It was left to the government to act as per the constitutional provisions, he added.

Stating that he would neither comment on Pokhran-II nor blame the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government for its misadventure, Deve Gowda said the country should stand united and face the fallout of the tests. The country should pursue the same foreign policy which it had adhered to during the last five decades, he added.

He said the country had to maintain its cordial relations with its neighbours and criticised Defence Minister George Fernandes's remarks against China.

Deve Gowda said the Manavatha Vedike, an apolitical organisation, would hold a silent procession in Bangalore on June 18 to protest against the sanctions imposed by the West.

UNI

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