Date:14/04/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/04/14/stories/2004041407031100.htm

National

`BJP had nothing to do with sari distribution function'

By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, APRIL 13. The Bharatiya Janata Party today defended Lalji Tandon, former Minister and senior party leader in Uttar Pradesh, who for years has had the responsibility of nursing Lucknow, the Prime Minister's parliamentary constituency.

While blaming and criticising the Congress and some other Opposition parties for "politicising'' yesterday's tragedy that left 22 poor women and some children dead, the party spokesperson and general secretary, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, said that neither the BJP nor Mr. Tandon had anything to do with the function where saris were distributed, leading to the stampede.

"This is not the first time that a function to distribute gifts to the poor has been organised,'' Mr. Naqvi said, adding that every year this was done by charitable organisations on Mr. Tandon's birth anniversary. Admitting that the man behind the so-called charitable institution may have been a BJP member, the party could not take any responsibility for what was done in his "individual capacity."

"This was a pure accident,'' Mr. Naqvi said, and compared the tragedy to the road accident in Chhattisgarh in which the senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister, Ajit Jogi, has been seriously injured. He said the BJP had not made political capital of that tragedy. The Congress should not politicise the episode. "After Jogi's accident [Deputy Prime Minister] L.K. Advani inquired about Mr. Jogi's health,'' Mr. Naqvi added.

As for the model code of conduct, Mr. Naqvi said there was nothing wrong in a charitable organisation distributing free saris during election time. Moreover, Mr. Tandon had not yet been appointed as an election agent of the Prime Minister, who, "technically speaking,'' was not yet a candidate there since he had not filed his nomination, Mr. Naqvi said at a press conference here today.

Did that mean charitable organisations run by BJP members in their "individual capacity'' could distribute largesse to voters in the constituency without violating the model code of conduct?

Mr. Naqvi evaded a direct response to that question from the press. His response was that "charitable work like distribution of saris cannot be condemned'' and "Mr. Tandon has stated clearly that he had nothing to do with it [the episode] — us hadse se unka koi lena-dena nahin hai.''

Mr. Tandon is not exactly the favourite leader of other State unit BJP leaders. In fact, the former Chief Minister, Kalyan Singh, parted company with the BJP in 1999 after the Prime Minister had ignored him on his visit to Lucknow while he was the Chief Minister and preferred to have "tea'' organised by Mr. Tandon.

At that time, there were accusations against Mr. Kalyan Singh, who is back in the BJP now, from Mr. Tandon and other party leaders that he had "sabotaged'' the party's chances and had tried to get Mr. Vajpayee defeated in his constituency.

Party insiders say that the Lucknow tragedy will once again give an opportunity to some senior party leaders to gang up against Mr. Tandon to reduce his influence with the Prime Minister.