BJP plans `aggressive’ campaign

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JULY 4. The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today announced that it would launch an "aggressive" campaign - Sansad Se Sadak (Parliament to Street) - from July 6 against the Central Government’s action in dismissing the Governors. They were irresponsible decisions.

The BJP vice-president, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, said the campaign, dubbed Rashtriya Suraksha, Swabhiman Avam Loktantra Bachao Saptah (National Security, Self-Respect and Save Democracy Week), would last till July 13.

Under this campaign, the party will organise public meetings, rallies, demonstrations and sit-in protests in all districts and States.

As many as 21 BJP leaders will travel to different parts of the country to address meetings and rallies.

Mr. Naqvi said the Union Home Minister, Shivraj Patil’s statement on the dismissal of Governors was "childish" and added that it was a clear indication that the United Progressive Alliance Government had begun to systematically demolish the constitutional authorities and democratic traditions.

The announcement of repealing the Prevention of Terrorism Act, the Prime Minister giving a "clean chit" to the "tainted" Ministers and the undemocratic manner in which the Governors were dismissed were some of the examples that highlighted the policies of this Government on various crucial national issues, he said.

Mr. Naqvi said that despite frequent incidents of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and increasing infiltration of terrorists from across the border, the Home Minister was ignoring the ground realities and was making public announcements that incidents of infiltration and terrorism had come down. "On the one hand, the confidence of terrorists is increasing and, on the other, the Government wants to repeal POTA which was effectively controlling terrorism".