Date:09/10/2002 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2002/10/09/stories/2002100904230100.htm

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Accept your mistakes, Advani tells Modi

By Manas Dasgupta

GANDHINAGAR Oct. 8. The Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, said today that the BJP would prefer to continue the coalition process at the Centre after the next parliamentary elections even if it secured a clear majority. Mr. Advani's assertion came after the party president, Venkaiah Naidu, who from the same dais minutes ago had set a target of at least 300 seats for his partymen in the 2004 Parliamentary elections. `

`I wish Mr. Naidu's expectations are fulfilled, but even if the BJP gets 300 seats on its own, we will like to continue the National Democratic Alliance Government,'' Mr. Advani said. It was because, he said, the NDA coalition had proved to be the real representative government of all sections of people from all corners of the country.

Mr. Advani was addressing the "sankalp sammelan'' of the Gujarat unit of the BJP. But even while agreeing with Mr. Naidu's assertion that Narendra Modi would continue to be the Chief Minister if the BJP retained power in the coming Assembly elections and endorsing the political resolution praising Mr. Modi's leadership, Mr. Advani expressed reservations about his performance so far. "It is not sufficient to win elections,'' Mr. Advani said, "it must prove its worth to the people by ensuring good governance''.

But Mr. Advani ruled out the possibility of imposition of President's rule and said that Mr. Modi would continue to be the Chief Minister till the Assembly elections, which was expected by the end of the year, since the Supreme Court had not given any directive. The Government would be bound only by the court's directive and no one else could force the imposition of President's rule.

Mr. Advani, like Mr. Naidu, defended the State Government's actions in controlling the post-Godhra riots and said Mr. Modi had to take out the "gaurav rath yatra'' only to restore the "pride'' of the State that had been hurt by Opposition allegations of the riots being "state-sponsored''. Drawing a parallel with the then Central Government's "inaction'' in controlling the anti-Sikh riots after the assassination of Indira Gandhi, Mr. Advani said that while not a shot was fired by the police during the three days of mayhem in Delhi in which at least 4,000 Sikhs were killed, the Modi administration swung into action to control the post-Godhra riots without any loss of time.

Mr. Advani admitted that during the post-Godhra riots the party's central leadership was worried about the future of the party in the State coming close on the heels of the BJP losing the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Punjab, but the situation was also not as alarming as the Opposition made it to be by defaming Gujarat. But he had a piece of advice for Mr. Modi and the BJP in the State: "Go for self-introspection and accept your mistakes.''