Rajnath Singh promises happy ending to BJP meet

Amid reports of a rift within the BJP, especially after L.K. Advani's decision to skip the national executive meeting, party president Rajnath Singh said the conclave would end on a positive note and everyone will go back "happy".

In his inaugural address at the national executive meeting here, Rajnath Singh said everyone will go home "happy, energised and enthusiastic", Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Prakash Javadekar told reporters.

The party chief also urged the BJP cadres to strive for a decisive victory in the next elections, Javadekar said.

The BJP president started his speech expressing regret over the Maoist attack on the Congress convoy in Chhattisgarh last month and moved on to congratulate Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for the recent party victory in the by-polls.

He called the by-polls' outcome an "encouraging development".

Modi has been at the centre of attention in the meeting, with speculation being rife that he would be made the chief of the party's campaign committee for the 2014 general election.

Talking about terror and the Maoist problem, Rajnath Singh said these had aggravated due to the "misguided policies of the central government".

"Unless there is an integrated approach there will be no permanent solution to both the problems," he said.

"If even after ruling for 56 years, out of the 66 years since Independence, the resource rich areas of the country are under the influence of naxalism, the policies of the Congress are directly responsible for it," Rajnath Singh said.

"The biggest problem is that the Congress and the Left parties have made huge mistakes by protecting people who believe in an extremist ideology and violent activities," he said.

Rajnath Singh attacked the Congress for making false promises.

"Making false promises is not something exclusive to this UPA government led by Dr. Manmohan Singh but it has been the DNA of all Congress governments in the past as well," he said.

The BJP president said if his party gets 10 years in power, it will change the face of the nation.

"I would like to assure the people of our great nation, if we are given a chance to rule for at least 10 years, we will make so much difference that the need for any populist measure like Bharat Nirman or food security bill will be reduced to a naught," he said.

He also promised the formation of the Telangana state, if the party comes to power.

Rajnath Singh also cautiously took up the issue of Tibet and the recent self-immolations, saying India should not remain "insensitive" to the "atrocities being committed on Tibetan monks".

"In the past few months, hundreds of Buddhist monks have committed self-immolation in protest against the violation of the human rights by China in Tibet...India cannot remain insensitive to the atrocities being committed on the Buddhist monks in Tibet as we share a long history of cultural affinity with this region," he said.