Believing Kalyan assurance on Babri Congress' only fault: PM

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday denied RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s charge that Congress was also to be blamed for the demolition of the Babri mosque, saying the party’s only fault was to believe the assurance given by then UP chief minister Kalyan Singh to the Supreme Court on protecting the structure.

“Kalyan Singh (then UP Chief Minister) gave a solemn assurance to the Supreme Court (about protecting the mosque). The Congress party certainly can be blamed because it believed that (Kalyan) Singh will honour his assurance given to the Supreme Court. But he did not honour it. That’s the only fault of the Congress in the demolition of the Babri mosque,” Singh told reporters in Guwahati.

Replying to questions, Singh maintained that communalism is a “great danger” to the unity of the country and the Congress party had espoused secular values. On the issues of naxalism and terrorism, Singh said both constitute a “great threat” to the unity and integrity of India. The Prime Minister also vowed to make “more determined efforts” to contain these problems in future.

Singh expressed confidence that the Congress and its allies will be able to form “a credible government” at the Centre after the polls. Singh, a Rajya Sabha MP from Assam, stressed on the “need to renew efforts to control insurgency” in North East and Assam in particular.

Asked if the UPA would renew its alliance with the Left to form the next government, the prime minister said, “What happens after the polls I cannot predict, as I am not an astrologer. I believe the Congress and the UPA allies will form the next government”.

To a question on the possibility of the Taliban taking control of nuclear weapons in Pakistan, the Prime Minister said, “We have been assured that nuclear assets of Pakistan are in safe hands.”

Later addressing an election rally, the Prime Minister claimed that Congress led UPA government has worked hard to fulfill its promises and formulated policies which would benefit the ‘Aam Aadmi’ (common man).

Promising to work for a “new India” and a “prosperous” Assam, the prime minister said, “It’s the demand of time that Congress should get five more years to govern the country.”

Listing out the central government’s flagship programmes like NREGA and NRHM, the PM said the work is still incomplete and efforts have to be made to rid India of poverty.

The PM also mentioned the steps taken by the UPA government for the welfare of minorities like formation of a new ministry for minority affair, PM’s 15-point programme and identification of minority concentrated districts for carrying out special development works.

He also exp ressed concern over “certain parties doing politics by dividing people on caste and community lines” and felt such politics obstructs the country’s progress.