The Hindu : Modi must go: People's Front

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 18, 2002

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Modi must go: People's Front

By Our Special Correspondent

The People's Front leaders, Somnath Chatterjee, Mulayam Singh Yadav, H.D. Deve Gowda, Harkishan Singh Surjeet, and A.B. Bardhan, at a rally in New Delhi on Wednesday. — Photo: Sandeep Saxena

NEW DELHI APRIL 17. The People's Front today took its `oust Modi' campaign to the streets organising a protest march to Jantar Mantar here, even as parties constituting the Front continued the protest in Parliament.

The Front leaders said their agitation would be intensified if the demands were not met. MPs belonging to the combine, who participated in the march taken out from the Parliament House, launched a virulent attack against the BJP Government in Gujarat, demanding the immediate removal of the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, and criticising what they called the BJP's bid to advance Assembly elections in the State.

The leaders demanded effective steps to check the ongoing violence in the State and provide security, relief and rehabilitation to the minorities. Similar marches and rallies were organised elsewhere in the country.

The meeting was addressed by the Front leaders, including the CPI (M) general secretary, Harkishan Singh Surjeet, his CPI counterpart, A.B. Bardhan, the JD (S) president, H.D. Deve Gowda, the Samajwadi Party chief and front convener, Mulayam Singh Yadav, the All-India Forward Bloc general secretary, Debabrata Biswas, all of whom said they would be in the forefront of the battle against "communal forces''.

Mr. Surjeet said the people should be prepared for any sacrifice in the fight against communal forces and that the NDA allies must distance themselves from the BJP. Mr. Bardhan appealed to the Election Commission to take into consideration whether the ground condition was conducive to holding free and fair polls.

Mr. Gowda, who has visited Gujarat criticised the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, for his Goa speech and asked that if the Government felt that the riots were triggered by the Godhra incident of train burnings, then why were people behind the train carnage not exposed.

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