M A I N   N E W S

BJP-Uma love may bloom again

Kanpur, April 4
In a bid to prevent division of saffron votes in UP Assembly elections, a senior BJP leader today held out an olive branch to Bharatiya Janshakti chief Uma Bharti saying those who had been part of the saffron fold should support Hindutva.

“It is up to the party chief and the party to decide. But I would like to say that all those people who had been with us should come in support of Hindutva,” L. K Advani said at a news conference here.

He was asked about the VHP’s reported statements that there should be no split in Hindu votes because of the row between Bharti and the BJP and that Hindutva forces should unite.

Advani’s remarks followed the BJP’s reconciliation, brokered by the VHP, with its MP Yogi Adityanath, whose revolt over ticket distribution had threatened division in saffron votes in the Gorakhpur region.

Bharti, who had been expelled from the BJP for her outbursts against the party leadership, launched the Bharatiya Janshakti party that she says espouses the core Sangh ideology.

BJP insiders admit she has been able to make inroads into their party vote-bank in Uttrakhand and could cause potential damage in Uttar Pradesh’s Bundelkhand region.

Advani also referred to the Ayodhya issue, calling the construction of a Ram temple on the disputed site a “national desire”.

Advani said the issue could also be resolved through judicial and legislative measures.

The BJP leader also defended a party election CD that allegedly carries reference to Babri and the Godhra train arson of 2002.

“I have not seen the CD. But I do not think that anything that contains a mention of Babri or Godhra can be deemed provocative,” Advani remarked when asked whether the video was made with his consent.

In his comments on the Saarc Summit in New Delhi, Advani maintained that his party staunchly opposed the joint anti-terror mechanism with Pakistan. — PTI

BJP decides to withhold CD
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 4
The BJP today decided to withhold a CD released by one of its leader in Lucknow yesterday as it felt embarrassed by its communal contents.

Lalji Tandon, UP Legislative Assembly leader of the BJP, had released a CD yesterday in Lucknow. Some news channels, which got the CD at the press conference described it as “highly provocative and inflammatory about a particular community”.

While BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was put on the damage-control exercise when he said the party was withholding it and would remove the objectionable portions, UP state unit president Keshrinath Tripathi said the CD was supposed to go to the Election Commission for vetting and was to be released only after clearance from it.