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| << June14, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Save Silent Valley & Bharathapuzha |
June16, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Who Needs the Reprieve - Modi or Vajpayee? >> |
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Damage control: BJP rules out Modi's ouster ------------------------------------------------------ NDTV Correspondent Monday, June 14, 2004 (New Delhi): BJP today ruled out removal of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. "There is no proposal to make any change in leadership in Gujarat," BJP President Venkaiah Naidu told a press conference. Naidu made the announcement after speaking to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee over the phone. Clarifying Vajpayee's statement, the party president claimed the former Prime Minister did not blame Modi for the party's defeat in the Lok Sabha elections. "He hasn't said anything like this. We also don't blame the BJP's poll performance on the Gujarat riots," he claimed. The statement came a day after Vajpayee had given a clear indication that Modi might be on his way out because of his handling of the riots, that had cost the party heavily in the Lok Sabha elections. Not on agenda Naidu also announced that the Modi issue would not be discussed in the BJP National Executive meeting in Mumbai on June 23-24. The executive meet is to review the political situation and prepare a strategy for the coming assembly elections in Maharashtra, Bihar, Jharkhand, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh. Earlier in the day, Naidu met senior party leaders at his residence to discuss the crisis that rose, after Vajpayee's statements. The former Prime Minister had reportedly said that the move to oust Modi was gathering momentum in the party. He claimed that he himself had wanted Modi to step down after the riots. However, some sections of the BJP are reportedly against removal of Modi. The party's national executive at Mumbai is likely to take the final decision on June 22. Sangh factor But the man at the centre of the controversy continues to remain silent and has decided not to challenge Vajpayee. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, meanwhile, alleged that Modi was being made a scapegoat for the Gujarat riots. "This is a sad statement. They are making Modi a scapegoat. There are many other reasons for the defeat of the BJP," said Acharya Giriraj Kishore, Vice President, VHP. "Appeasement of Muslim voters, and lack of co-ordination among the rank and file of the party are responsible for the debacle," he added. The RSS too came out in defence of Modi saying the Sangh will not accept "putting blame" on him for BJP's election debacle. "There are various reasons for victory and defeat and this should be analysed. We would not accept putting of blame on Gujarat violence or an individual, particularly Modi for this," said Ram Madhav, RSS spokesperson. Cong beams Nonetheless, the widening rift between moderates and hardliners in the BJP has the Congress party beaming. "Vajpayee has come to this conclusion very late. We have been pressing for it since the beginning. And if he has come to this conclusion in a positive way then I think it should be welcomed. But I don't find his party agreeing with this," said Salman Khurshid, Congress leader. The party also added that by trying to distance itself from the Vajpayee's statements on Modi, the BJP has demonstrated that it is losing focus and succumbing to its own contradictions. Once out of power, the BJP now has to set a roadmap that doesn't set it on a collision course with the Sangh Parivar or on a self-destructive path that hurts its electoral prospects even harder. Vajpayee's statements had created quite a stir in the party but the damage control by some leaders have given at least a temporary reprieve to Modi. |
| << June14, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Save Silent Valley & Bharathapuzha |
June16, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Who Needs the Reprieve - Modi or Vajpayee? >> |
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