N-deal: BJP dares govt to go ahead

The BJP today dared the Congress-led government at the Centre to go ahead with the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement instead of "blaming others" for the delay.

The deal and India's relations with neighbours were the subject of a scathing attack launched by the BJP in its foreign policy resolution at the party's National Executive meeting.

"Why do they blame their partners or the Opposition. It is for them (Congress) to arrive at a solution," said senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh. "Set your own house in order," said the resolution, adding that the deal was unacceptable to the party in the present form and must be renegotiated.

Taking significantly hawkish positions on Nepal and relations with China, the resolution criticised the Manmohan Singh government on several fronts.

On Nepal, the party expressed satisfaction over recent elections but said the Maoists got only about one-third popular vote and that too through "intimidation."

"It is important that unity of policy and action of all democratic forces in Nepal be maintained," it said. Noting that the Maoists have ties with Naxalites in India, Singh said this was a danger to the country.

On China, the party continued its recent change of heart, taking a more RSS-influenced line by demanding that the government desist from "heaping further humiliations on the country; that it immediately speed up construction of infrastructure that our forces need for repulsing foreign troops in the North-East, in particular in Arunachal and Sikkim."

It added that "as India's security is inextricably entwined with what happens in Tibet and because of the civilisational ties that our country has had with them, the government of India must come out clearly on the side of the people of Tibet in this hour of their oppression and trial."

The executive ended with the party's prime ministerial candidate, LK Advani, galvanising the party for coming Assembly and general elections and a resolution asking people to show the "inflationary" UPA government the door.

Advani said many sitting MPs and MLAs would not be repeated to cut "local anti-incumbency." Within BJP circles, this is known as the "Modi formula," after Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi refused tickets to over 40 per cent sitting MLAs in the state and romped home to a comfortable win.

"Voters, and even karyakartas, punish those who are arrogant, unresponsive, inactive, inaccessible and insincere. This kind of constituency-level