Sonia asks Vajpayee to quit

By Javed M. Ansari

RAJIV GANDHINAGAR (Bangalore), MARCH 17. The Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, today set the tone for the AICC session, which got under way this morning, with a focussed and hard-hitting attack on the BJP-led Government at the Centre.

Accusing it of reducing issues of national security to commerce, she said her party owed it to the nation, the jawans and the martyrs to demand the departure of the NDA Government on moral grounds.

Aware of the fast-changing political situation and conscious of not being overtaken by events, the Congress president chose not to make an elaborate speech, limiting herself to a short and pointed attack on the Government. Promising to make a detailed speech at the plenary session tomorrow, she gave ample indication of what was in store for the ruling combine.

Ms. Gandhi's speech, and the political resolution that was moved subsequently, virtually amounted to a declaration of war against the BJP-led Government, urging the rank and file to take the `Defencegate' issue to the people and expose the corrupt Government. Speaking extempore and constantly switching between English and Hindi, Ms. Gandhi accused the BJP-led Government of having not only put the nation in a embarrassing position but also betraying it. ``Yeh desh ke saath dhokha aur gaddari hai (This is a fraud against people and a betrayal of the country),'' she said.

Reiterating her party's stand on the Prime Minister's offer of a judicial inquiry, she said she saw little point in it as Mr. Vajpayee and his Government had already given the culprits a clean chit. The expose had only confirmed what the Congress knew all along - that the Government was made of corrupt and opportunistic power seekers.

That the Congress would use the opportunity to make the Government squirm was evident once again in Ms. Gandhi's speech, when she said that those who tried to indulge in character assassination of Congress leaders had been caught neck- deep in corruption. She referred to the problems faced by her mother-in- law and ``the manner in which they first character- assassinated my husband and your leader, Rajivji, and then created the situation for his assassination''.

The tone set by Ms. Gandhi in her speech was reflected in the day's proceedings, specially the political resolution which was moved by Mr. Arjun Singh. A whole section of the voluminous 31- page resolution was devoted to the current crisis.

It accused the Central Government of betraying the trust of the nation and undermining its security, called on the Prime Minister to own up his and his Government's moral responsibility and in the best traditions of democracy to tender his resignation.

The resolution gave ample indication of the party's strategy to pin down the BJP on the issue of national security, and thereby knock the bottom off its monopoly on the security plank. Describing the scandal as the worst-ever involving matters of national security, the party said it shared the anguish of the people at the rampant venality with which the establishment was riddled, extending to the echelons of the Defence Ministry and penetrating even the Prime Minister's Office.

Significantly, the party also chose to clarify its position on the question of alliances and coalition governments. It maintained that even at Pachmarhi it had spoken of the possibilities of entering into coalitions, but that position was misunderstood. Today it sought to clear the picture by stating that the party, in the changed circumstances, was prepared to enter into appropriate electoral or coalition arrangements with secular parties without compromising on its basic ideology.

The resolution was, however, categorical that there was no question of the party having any kind of understanding with communal forces or any party consorting with them. The party would play a pro-active role in restoring secular governance to the country.

Electoral strategy

Indicating its strategy for the coming Assembly elections, the resolution said in Tamil Nadu the priority was to dislodge the unholy BJP-DMK combine. There was nothing in the history of the two parties to justify the unholy and unprincipled alliance.

Describing the DMK as both corrupt and nepotistic, it said the Jain Commission had confirmed the sins of its Government, and called on the voters to do the same. On Pondicherry, the resolution said the Government stood out for its record of good governance. It pointed out that with the TMC and Congress back together, the combine would again triumph.

In West Bengal, the struggle was against the venality and violence of the Left Front. The party welcomed the Trinamool Congress distancing itself from the NDA and showed its willingness to work with non-Left secular forces to end the sway of the Left Front. On Kerala, the resolution expressed the confidence that the UDF would defeat the Left Front and bring the State back to prosperity.

On the Ayodhya issue, the resolution made it clear that while the party was not opposed to building a Ram temple, it was against any such attempt by demolishing the Babri Masjid. It accused the Prime Minister for trying to explain the demolition as an expression of national sentiment.

It also attacked the Government for trying to saffronise education and culture in a bid to impose its agenda. ``The cardinal principle of our policies was that education programs would be carried out in conformity with secular values.''

On Jammu and Kashmir, the resolution noted that the Government's policy was marked by confusion and contradictions.

`BJP anti-poor'

It drew a distinction between the BJP and itself on economic issues, saying the latter's policies were anti-poor and anti- farmer. Debunking the claims that the BJP was following the policies of the Congress, the resolution pointed out that while the BJP's path was that of abject surrender, it stood for independence in economic policy and self-reliance. ``Their policies make the rich richer at the expense of the poor. Their path mocks at our achievements, ours builds on the future.''

The resolution was accepted by the AICC and will be endorsed by the plenary tomorrow.

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