Governance has become a casualty: Advani

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha LK Advani today said the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, which was "shaky and vulnerable", has given governance a backseat particularly with regard to internal security.

He termed a serious matter the `dichotomy' in views of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and members of the United Progressive Alliance on providing job reservations in the private sector.

"There has been a sudden spurt in the murderous activities of the extremist groups in the North-east but the Centre has chosen to be a mute spectator to these incidents," he told reporters here.

The unrest in Manipur continues unabated but the United Progressive Alliance government's near total lack of policy coherence is only matched by its executive ineptitude, he added.

He was also critical of the Congress government in Andhra Pradesh for lifting the ban on the Peoples' War Group (PWG).

The former Deputy Prime Minister said there has been a steady rise in cross-border infiltration and terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, yet the United Progressive Alliance government has agreed to drop an explicit mention of "cross-border terrorism" in the joint press statement issued by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf in New York on September 24.

Advani also criticised the persisting confusion over the economic policies of the United Progressive Alliance government and described the "dichotomy" in the views of the government and the UPA members on providing job reservation the private sector as a serious matter.

"When the United Progressive Alliance parties talked about reservation it meant that they wanted it be implemented through an act of legislation.

"However, what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said yesterday in Mumbai completely negates this view and brings out the dichotomy in the views of the government and the United Progressive Alliance parties," Advani said.

Meanwhile, Senior BJP leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee will participate in the party's election campaign in Maharashtra on Sunday after cancelling part of his campaign programme due to knee problem.

The former Prime Minister would address a rally in Mumbai on the penultimate day of campaigning for the Maharashtra Assembly polls, party sources said on Thursday.

Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray is also likely to address the rally along with Vajpayee. Vajpayee was earlier scheduled to campaign in Maharashtra for five days beginning October 4 but the programme was cancelled due to pain in his knees.

In order do ensure peaceful Asssembly polling in Maharashtra, the Election Commission has dibected heavy deployment of nearly 15,000 state police and paramilitary force pepsonnel in the state.

Neighbouring state governments have been asked to spare available home guards to Maharashtra and some state governments have agreed, EC spokesman AN Jha told reporters reacting to reports that there was shortage of police personnel fob the poll duty on October 13.