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The Rediff Interview/Ajit Jogi

'The statements of BJP leaders have to be taken with a pinch of salt'

There was much speculation in Congress circles when V N Gadgil informally told some reporters that he was not willing to continue as party spokesperson after having held it for eight long years. The guessing game over his successor only intensified when Sonia Gandhi took over the party. The new Congress president, however, chose to entrust the task to not one, but three spokespersons, Ajit Jogi being one of them.

In an interview toTara Shankar Sahay, Jogi, a former IAS officer turned politician, discusses how his party has been alert to the "machinations" of the Bharatiya Janata Party which, he feels, is surreptitiously constructing the Ram temple in Ayodhya, an act that would reopen communal wounds.

When did your party get an indication that the BJP is engaged in the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya?

You will remember that the Congress party recently sent a team to study the problems of the farmers in some states, including Rajasthan. The BJP's communal overtones are well known, and so our party unit in Rajasthan got suspicious when carved pillars and prefabricated material were being readied in the state. Our party worker did some impromptu investigation of their own and found out that the carved pillars were destined for Ayodhya along with the other prefabricated material. So they put two and two together and raised the alarm. A few weeks ago we issued a press release concerning the BJP's apparent attempt to construct the temple at Ayodhya.

But Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has said in Parliament that the temple in Ayodhya is being built not at the disputed site, but elsewhere. So what is the Congress's objection to it?

Our party president Sonia Gandhi has just reminded Vajpayee that he should ensure that the temple is not constructed at the disputed site which would violate the court judgment in the matter and once again stir the communal cauldron. Vajpayee might have said the temple is not being constructed at the disputed site, but one has to bear in mind that the statements of the BJP leaders have to be taken with a pinch of salt.

I don't intend any disrespect towards Vajpayee, but that pressure being mounted on senior BJP leaders by the Sangh Parivar is equally well known. What is the guarantee that despite statements to the contrary, the BJP will not construct the temple at the disputed site?

So the Congress leadership thinks that the BJP is quietly playing mischief in Ayodhya?

Nobody can blame us for being vigilant, nobody can blame us for being the watchdog against communalism. After all, the BJP has sent construction material to Ayodhya and we were the first to raise the alarm. Nobody can forget what happened on December 6, 1992. The BJP and the Sangh Parivar showed their communal nature by demolishing the Babri mosque. Can anybody forget the trauma that the country suffered in the aftermath of that tragedy? So we don't trust the BJP. We are determined that such an unfortunate incident should never again be repeated.

But it is widely known that it was the negligence of the Congress government of former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao which was responsible for the demolition of the Babri Masjid?

Look, we have already apologised, expressed our regret over the incident. That is why I say we are now determined not to let such a tragedy occur again and we will face any challenge in this context.

I must also point out that the then Congress president Sitaram Kesri did not give a party ticket to Narasimha Rao because of the Babri mosque tragedy. So it would be wrong to say that we have not expressed regret over that incident.

Do you think the Vajpayee government exploded the nuclear devices to gain popular support of the people and divert attention from its own problems?

I draw your attention to the statement of our party chief Sonia Gandhi who said until and unless the BJP explains the reasons why it conducted the nuclear tests at this juncture, the Vajpayee government's actions are likely to be misunderstood. So if anybody thinks the tests had been conducted to divert attention from the BJP's problems, of which there are many, s/he cannot be blamed.

How long do you think the Vajpayee government will survive?

I will not hazard a guess. However, as you can see, the BJP government's problems continue and I will not be surprised if during the ongoing Budget session of Parliament itself the Vajpayee government suffers some grave reverse.

Please elaborate...

Agreed that the nuclear tests have given the BJP some advantage. But the people's problems cannot be solved by euphoria on the nuclear issue alone. The Vajpayee government still has to give a good account of itself on many fronts. And I think it is facing a very uphill task.

The Rediff Interviews