The Hindu : Modi Govt. puts off `gaurav rath yatra'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 03, 2002

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Modi Govt. puts off `gaurav rath yatra'

By Manas Dasgupta

AHMEDABAD JULY 2. Forced by the party's central leadership, the Gujarat unit of the BJP has cancelled "for the time being" the "gaurav rath yatra" of the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, scheduled to begin from the holy town of Ambaji on Thursday.

The yatra was scheduled to be flagged off by the Deputy Prime Minister, L. K. Advani. The party had planned to cover 125 of the 182 State Assembly constituencies in nine phases culminating with a rally in Ahmedabad on August 26.

"Uncalled for remarks" of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the opposition by the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, were cited by the BJP as the reasons for the cancellation. But sources close to the party said instructions came from the Prime Minister's Office and the party high command in Delhi to cancel the yatra in view of the intelligence reports of the possibility of violence.

The party's State unit president, Rajendrasinh Rana, said the decision was taken in deference to the wishes of the NHRC. Though the commission had taken an "one-sided stand'' without seeking clarifications from the party about the yatra, which was intended to create "an atmosphere of communal harmony, confidence and peace,'' the party decided to cancel the programme because of "our high regard and respect for a democratic institution like the NHRC.''

Mr. Rana said following the NHRC report, he had a talk with Mr. Modi in Gandhinagar this afternoon and "we both decided to cancel the yatra due to the apprehensions expressed by the commission."

He, however, maintained that neither the party nor the State Government felt that the yatra could lead to any violence, but apparently was apprehensive because the Congress had chosen to make it a "political issue".

Jagannath yatra

About the NHRC's comment on the Jagannath Rath Yatra on July 12, Mr. Rana said it was a religious tradition and would go ahead. There was no question of the Government forcing the Jagannath temple trust to cancel it as it could hurt the religious sentiments of the people.

The State Congress president, Amarsinh Chaudhary, welcomed the BJP's decision to cancel the Gaurav Rath Yatra. Stating that it was a "good decision", he said it had upheld the Congress stand that the yatra in such surcharged atmosphere could again lead to violence.

The Congress also cancelled its own "rath yatra" which was to follow the same route of Mr. Modi's yatra a week later to "wash out" the BJP influence.

Some BJP sources, however, said the NHRC's apprehension of large-scale violence was not unfounded as the yatra was planned to be taken through some sensitive areas with provocative slogans and speeches which could have disrupted the hard-earned peace in the State.

Mr. Modi's critics within and outside the party maintained that the decision to cancel the yatra was a "rebuff" to him. Mr. Rana, however, did not believe that the cancellation indicated the party's weakness or a rebuff to its campaign.

On the contrary, he criticised the Congress and Ms. Gandhi for making it a political issue. It had become a "fashion" with Ms. Gandhi to paint the people of Gujarat as "blood-thirsty violent'' and defame Gujarat even though there had been no violence during her four rallies in the State since the Godhra carnage and no disturbances in the village panchayat elections and the month-long dharna held by her party in the State.

"The people of Gujarat are waiting for an opportune time to give a fitting reply to her attempts to paint Gujarat black,'' he said.

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