Bharatiya Janata Party leader Atal Behari Vajpayee yesterday said his party had entered into the electoral alliance with Akali Dal (Badal) in Punjab to bring about ''peace, social harmony and prosperity'' and not not with the sole aim of grabbing power.
Speaking to reporters before addressing a Punjab chetna rally'' organised jointly by the two electoral partners here yesterday, he claimed that whenever the Akalis and the BJP joined hands in Punjab, it has witnessed social harmony and prosperity.
Holding the Congress responsible for the ''nightmare'' the state experienced during the decade-long militancy, the BJP leader said the tragedy could have been averted had power-hungry people not created such situation which led to murder and mayhem in Punjab.
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Vajpayee said the Congress was ''incapable'' of meeting the new challenges as it was ''vertically divided''.
The former prime minister claimed the Congress would be defeated in the coming assembly elections in Punjab and the change of chief minister by the party at this juncture was a manifestation of its apprehensions.
Vajpayee said the BJP was preparing to form the government in Punjab along with its electoral partner Akali Dal (Badal).
He, however, declined to give his assessment on the perspective of terrorism as detailed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee in its ''white paper'' which was released on the eve of the recent SGPC elections.
He also declined to comment on the Akali-BJP promise to issue a white paper on militancy. Painting a grim economic scenario in the country, Vajpayee,
said his party was not against giving benefits and relief to the
farming community.
The BJP leader said the worsening economic situation in the country has nothing to do with the policy of liberalisation which, had not been implemented in the right perspective.
He said the agriculture sector has been neglected, exports have come down, the money market is very tight and no no capital is available for new industrial units.
Both P V Narasimha Rao and the United Front governments are responsible for the economic mess, he added.
Vajpayee said contradictions in the Front government are surfacing over the issues of foreign investment and the opening up of the insurance sector to foreign and Indian private companies.
Commenting on the defeat of BJP candidates in the just concluded by-elections to the Rajya Sabha from uttar pradesh, Vajpayee said the BJP won five seats to the upper house from Uttar Pradesh earlier and got a greater number of votes than it commanded in the assembly even in the by-elections.
He said it showed that the BJP's claim to form the government in Uttar Pradesh, as it was the single largest party, remained valid even a fter the by-elections.
Replying to a question, Vajpayee said the BJP was prepared to face a general election and has decided to launch mass movement all over the country, except in Punjab, from December 15 to January 31.