archive: Forget Sonia, let's talk elections, say BJP leaders
Forget Sonia, let's talk elections, say BJP leaders
Political Bureau
The Economic Times
May 26, 1999
Title: Forget Sonia, let's talk elections, say BJP leaders
Author: Political Bureau
Publication: The Economic Times
Date: May 26, 1999
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, who sought to rain in its
point that the goings on in the Congress was just a tamasha, today
asked the party to get down to doing some serious politics. "Now that
the Sonia brigade has climbed down from treetops, dynasty fans have
stopped clean shaving their heads and Congresswomen have stopped
burning the pallus of their saris, we can discuss the election agenda
seriously," party leader Arun Jaitley said.
Mr Jaitley, who was responding to the Congress president's speech
where she sought the total allegiance of the faithful on the ground of
her lineage, said the latest discourse in the Congress has helped in
centring the coming Polls Over the question of leadership. "Her claim
to leadership is not based on experience or her knowledge about the
functioning of the democracy. She has based it on family and
lineage. In short, the dynasty. She has amply contributed to making
it an issue," the BJP leader said.
Mr Jaitley appeared to draw satisfaction from today's development as
the party has been planning to posit the leadership of Mr Vajpayee
against Ms Gandhi's. Ms Gandhi, who virtually showed their places to
the Congress leaders has said that all future dealings with them will
be on the terms set by her. She has also said that those Congressmen
who are not willing to accept her hegemony was free to leave the
party.
The BJP leader said that it was time that the Congress left behind its
preoccupation with its "first family" and discussed the issues
confronting the nation. "We are for a full-scale debate on issues.
Let the Congress join this debate," he said.
On Ms Gandhi's statement that the prime ministerial nominee will be
decided by the Congress Party in Parliament, Mr Jaitley said the past
events showed that the Congress president was more than anxious to run
for the post. "If the past events are any indicators, she would
certainly be the Congress' nominee.
At one stage, she said she was not interested in politics. Some 14
months back, she campaigned for the party because "she wanted to help
it", and a month ago, she went to the President with a list of 233 and
said that she was a prime ministerial aspirant," he said.
The BJP's gearing to carry out a full-scale offensive against the
Congress president, who was challenged from within over her Italian
origin, has already been made clear by the party's top brass. The
manifesto committee, which is meeting here next month, will ago
deliberate whether it should include the demand for an amendment in
the Constitution for making the office of the President,
Vice-President and Prime Minister exclusively for Indians.
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