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'Foreign hand' behind political turbulence, says Thakre

Certain ''external forces'', upset with the BJP-led government's ''assertion of national will'', were behind the current political turbulence in the nation's capital, Bharatiya Janata Party president Kushabhau Thakre said today.

Without identifying the external forces, Thakre said these forces wanted a weak government in India. ''The question today is not merely that of one government replacing another. It is a question of upholding India's national interests,'' he said in a statement in New Delhi.

Lashing out at the Congress and the CPI-M, he said the verdict of the 1998 general elections was clearly against these parties. ''The present Congress leadership and the leftists are now flouting that mandate. What they failed to secure during the elections, they are now seeking to secure through dubious and anti-democratic means.''

After the last general election, the Congress declared that it would sit in the opposition. ''The Pachmarhi declaration was made in that spirit. But the present Congress leadership, throwing principles to the wind, is now out to grab power by hook or by crook,'' the statement said.

The BJP president called upon Congressmen to ponder whether a party that had ditched its allies, and thereby tried to destabilise the government ''for the sake of the petty interests of its leader'', could be relied upon.

Though the left publicly declared Jayalalitha as ''untouchable'', she was ''perfectly touchable'' for them through the Congress. ''This is yet another instance of Marxist duplicity and doublespeak,'' the statement added.

Unfortunately, those driven by the lust for power were blind to the fact that their actions are likely to serve the interests of the external forces, he said.

Thakre wondered if it was merely a coincidence that certain individuals were seeking to create instability at a time when India needed stability the most.

''All those, irrespective of their political affiliation, who cherish the dream of a powerful and strong India, should rise to the occasion and defeat this evil destabilising game. Now is the time for all nationalists to rally around this government to protect national interests.''

UNI

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