The Hindu : 'Centre may intervene in Bengal, if necessary'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 28, 2003

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'Centre may intervene in Bengal, if necessary'

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM APRIL 27. The BJP president, M. Venkaiah Naidu, said here on Sunday that the Centre would intervene to uphold Constitutional provisions, if the CPI(M)-led Government in West Bengal tried to undermine elections to local self governments.

Talking to presspersons on his arrival here on a two-day visit to the State to attend to party matters, the BJP leader alleged that the Communists were using muscle power to subvert the elections. The Opposition parties were unable to campaign in many panchayats. If necessary, the Centre would intervene to check this.

Mr. Naidu said the recent terrorist attacks like that on All India Radio in Srinagar showed that Pakistan was not positively responding to the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee's move to improve relations with the neigbouring country. On the one hand, Pakistan took a stand against terrorism and, on the other, it encouraged terrorism.

He said there was no proposal to bring legislation for building of the Ram temple. The issue could be solved only through consensus. He did not think that the majority of Hindus shared the VHP leader, Ashok Singhal's view that the BJP Government betrayed the Hindus on the Ayodhya issue.

Mr. Naidu, who attended functions in Kollam and Pathanamthitta today, will be attending a meeting of party office-bearers at Kovalam near here tomorrow.

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'Centre may intervene in Bengal, if necessary'