The Hindu : No need to be apologetic: Advani

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Apr 14, 2002

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No need to be apologetic: Advani

By Neena Vyas

PANAJI April 13. A "re-shuffle" of portfolios between those in the Bharatiya Janata Party organisation and those in the Government and a no-nonsense unapologetic stance towards the party's `Hindutva' ideology were two decisions taken at the party's national executive committee meeting here this afternoon.

The Union Home Minister, L.K. Advani, categorically stated that "some people from the Government would go to the party and some from the party could go to the Government. The Prime Minister and the party president will discuss this and take a decision."

However, he said he would not move to the party as president; there was no vacancy there and he had a "duty" to perform as Home Minister.

On the confusion within the party on its commitment to Hindutva as well as the NDA agenda for governance, Mr. Advani made it clear that there was "no going back'' on the NDA agenda.

At the same time, his message to the party cadre was that "there was no need to be apologetic about our party's ideological moorings.... enlightened cultural nationalism and positive secularism."

The political resolution of the party will be discussed and adopted tomorrow, but Mr. Advani's "intervention" today during the discussion on the reasons for the BJP's downslide are indicative of the party line.

When Mr. Advani was asked by presspersons whether the violence in Gujarat was a manifestation of "enlightened cultural nationalism and positive secularism" he fumbled for a response before saying that in Gujarat, there had been a "vicious disinformation campaign (against the party and the Chief Minister) but an appropriate response has been given by the national executive".

On the allies' demand that the Gujarat Chief M, Narendra Modi, be sacked, Mr. Advani said that every party in the NDA had the right to run its own State Government.

"They have the right to say something about the functioning of the Government at the Centre, but the State Government."

In short, the BJP was in no mood to listen to the Telugu Desam Party chief, Chandrababu Naidu, and the Trinamool Congress leader, Mamata Banerjee, although it seemed to blame the decision to dissolve the Gujarat Assembly and hold early elections there on the Congress.

The Home Minister also admitted that the Vajpayee Government had not been able to fulfil the "high aspirations" of the people, who wanted a "Government with a difference", although the Centre had indeed performed well in several areas, including national security and foreign policy.

Appropriating for the Vajpayee Government all the political space in matters of national security, he made a direct attack on the Congress, saying, "From Pokhran to Kargil to POTO" the Congress had not stood with the Government on national security issues.

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