PM's memory lapses dangerous, says Sibal

MANDATE 2004

In the sharpest attack on Atal Bihari Vajpayee to date, Congress spokesman Kapil Sibal said here yesterday that the Prime Minister's "forgetfulness" had become a national issue in the elections, and suggested that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) look for a "youthful" leader to replace Vajpayee as he was not fit to lead the nation in the 21st century.

"We have a Prime Minister who is forgetting dates of polls in his own constituency (Lucknow) and asking the people to cast their votes on September 5," Sibal said.

Recently, he said, the Prime Minister even forgot whether it was Lok Sabha polls or Rajya Sabha polls and names of his party's candidates while campaigning in Chhattisgarh.

In lighter vein, Sibal said he was afraid that the "forgetful" Prime Minister might take his aircraft somewhere else other than the destination. "We do not want such a situation to arise," he said.

He was also concerned about what kind of promises Vajpayee might commit to Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and later forget them. "The people have realised that the BJP needed a youth leader to lead the party," he said.

Claiming that the Congress, its allies and the Left Front were heading for a "clear victory" in the polls, Sibal said, "Nothing is left with the ruling NDA, not even Hindutva. All that they have left is the Prime Minister who does not even remember the dates of the polls."