Vajpayee flays Cong, launches campaign

In a well concerted move after President APJ Abdul Kalam signed communique to dissolve the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee launched the BJP's election campaign by focusing on the anti-congressism and seeking the fresh mandate for "political stability".

Vajpayee addressed a gathering of 15000 strong party cadres which are considered to the BJP's backbone.

In an atmosphere which is created to infuse the confidence among cadres, BJP president M Venkaiah Naidu was re-elected as the BJP president for the second term.

Though BJP's top leadership targetted the Congress and made a determined move to co-opt various sections of the society, it was Vajpayee's address which gave the idea of the BJP's future political strategy.

Referring to the achievements of the government in the domestic and international areas, Vajpayee made it clear that his present tenure as the PM was not enough to realise the dream of people of India. The implicit message was that the party's cadres must seek vote on the government's performance.

In what may prove to be an emotive issue, Vajpayee said that the government's move to link rivers of the country was aimed at providing water to every regions of the country.

"The projects will make droughts the thing of past" he said, adding that the country could have marched ahead if the project had taken 40 years back in the Congress regime.

The BJP's campaign theme was focussed on anti-congressism in tactful manner in order to keep doors open for non-congress allies to jump onto the NDA's bandwagon in the post-poll scenario.

Vajpayee recalled the political conduct of the Congress in the past and cautioned all non-congress parties not to get swayed by the Congress's efforts to forge an anti-BJP coalition. "The Congress has the tradition of betraying its allies" he said

That the government's performance would be the BJP's mantra in the election is emphasised by Vajpayee when he urged BJP's council members to seek renewed mandate from people on the performance.

"We are trying to resolve the problems which are legacies of the Congress" he said, alluding to the problems in J and K and North Eastern states.

What assumed significance in the council's meeting is the passionate appeal by Venkaiah Naidu to BJP activists to co-opt minorities within the BJP's fold.

He said that the political conduct of the minorities, particularly Muslims, had undergone a sea-change and they were favourable to the BJP.

He urged party activists to grab this opportunity and co-opt Muslims. In the meeting, the BJP also paraded Kalyan Singh as one its OBC face to influence the political scene in UP.