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Thursday, Mar 24, 2005

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Congress sticks to its stand on Modi

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 23. The Congress said today that the Bharatiya Janata Party should introspect and do some soul-searching on why a visa had been denied to the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, by the United States. Responding to questions about Mr. Modi's coming visit to the United Kingdom, the Congress spokesman, Anand Sharma, said the BJP had described him as the best Chief Minister of the country and regarded him as "their mascot."

Stating that Mr. Modi had become a cause for national embarrassment, Mr. Sharma said the Congress was consistent with its stand that Mr. Modi presided over the carnage in the State in March 2002 and the subsequent subversion of justice. All that the Government did, he said, was to take the stand that as a Chief Minister of a State, he could have been extended the courtesy of a visa.

Mr. Sharma also criticised the BJP for indulging in the politics of obstruction over the Patents Bill in a reference to its stand in the Rajya Sabha today. The Bill, he said, was an improved version of what the National Democratic Alliance had prepared. The new amendments safeguard the interest of the country, scientists and researchers, and the vulnerable sections of society, he said.

Referring to the fact that drug-pricing in the country was governed by the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO), Mr. Sharma said the Bill did not dilute the authority of the state on this count. "Prices of essential drugs in the country have been kept low not because of the old patents regime or any other law but due to political will.

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