The Hindu : Laloo blasts plan for `gaurav rath yatra'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 30, 2002

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National

Laloo blasts plan for `gaurav rath yatra'

By K. Balchand

PATNA Aug. 29. The Rashtriya Janata Dal leader, Laloo Prasad Yadav, today launched an offensive against the BJP's proposed `gaurav rath yatra' in Gujarat and criticised the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Ms. Jayalalithaa's outburst against the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi.

Lashing out at the `yatra', Mr. Yadav said it was yet another BJP attempt to play the "Hindu card" when the party found itself "cornered on all fronts" in national politics and wondered what national glory it sought to achieve. "It is a "danga yatra" (communal riot) and would lead to riots and burn the country," he alleged. The RJD would launch a nationwide agitation from September 3 to demand that the `yatra' be stopped, the Gujarat Government sacked, its Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, arrested and President's rule imposed in the State.

Mr. Yadav supported the Election Commission's decision in deferring the Assembly elections till the situation returned to normality. He objected to the manner in which the Chief Election Commissioner, J.M. Lyngdoh, was being accused of being partial on account of his religion.

"T.N. Seshan, former CEC, was not a Yadav or a Christian, but a Brahmin. None of these communal leaders spoke against him when he deferred elections in Bihar in 1995 when I was Chief Minister thrice for no reason though it was being held on schedule and no riots took place in the State, as in Gujarat now," he said.

He said it did not behove of Ms. Jayalalithaa to speak against Ms. Gandhi when the "country was burning" and the latter was emerging as an "alternative leader". Ms. Jayalalithaa's remarks, he maintained, was a "conspiracy" to demoralise Ms. Gandhi and tarnish her image.

Mr. Yadav said the Supreme Court had pronounced that Ms. Gandhi was a citizen of the country and it was improper to talk of her as an outsider when, indeed, she happened to be the country's "bahu". Also Ms. Jayalalithaa had submitted a petition to the President supporting Ms. Gandhi's candidature for Prime Ministership, he said.

Ms. Jayalalithaa he said, was playing into the hands of the Union Home Minister, L.K. Advani, in "furthering" the Hindu card. "It is just as improper to level accusations against the Congress president as it would be tracing the background of Mr. Advani. It would not be good to say that he hailed from Pakistan," Mr. Yadav said.

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