UPA has buckled under US pressure, says Rajnath

BJP president Rajnath Singh launched a frontal attack on the UPA Government on the India-US civil nuclear agreement and accused the Centre of buckling under the US pressure, on Sunday.

Formally launching party's election campaign at the massive 'Garjana Rally' here, the BJP chief said that the party would oppose any agreement, which harmed the security concerns of the country. The India-US nuclear deal, in the present form, was not in the interests of the country and infringed India's right to conduct nuclear tests in future and become a nuclear State, Singh said.

The NDA Government, led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had conducted nuclear test despite US pressure but the present Government was keen to push through the deal ignoring the objections raised by the Opposition. Singh said it was unfortunate that the UPA Government, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, did not even deemed it fit to consider opposition to such an important issue.

Singh blamed the 50-year rule of the Congress for all the ills faced by the country today. "The UPA Government is totally apathetic to miseries of the poor and deprived sections and suicide by farmers has become a regular feature in all the major States," Rajnath said.

"The country made big strides in all spheres during the NDA Government headed by Vajpayee and conducting a nuclear test, ignoring the US pressure, was one of these achievements," he said.

Criticising the Central Government for continuing its policy of appeasement of Muslims, Singh said it was following the British policy of 'divide and rule', harming the larger interests of the country.

He said it was an irony that while the farmers were committing suicides, the Union .inance Minister was basking under the glory of the rising Sensex, which was no indication of prosperity of the people at the ground level.

Promising a clean, honest and a transparent Government in Himachal, if voted to power after the elections, Singh said that development and welfare of the people would be top priority of a BJP Government.

Referring to the massive turnout at the rally, the BJP chief said that it was an indication that the people were itching for a change.

"I can see a pro-BJP wave sweeping the State as the people are fed up with corruption and misrule of the Congress Government," Rajnath said.

He said that he too had remained the Chief Minister of biggest State of the country but what was happening in Himachal was unprecedented and shameful.

He claimed that whenever BJP Government was formed in Himachal, it witnessed overall development and unmatched progress while the Congress Governments failed to fulfill even the promises made to people despite massive mandate.

Rajnath also cautioned the BJP leaders against making tall and unrealistic promises that could not be fulfilled.

Earlier, party's national vice-president and former Chief Minister Shanta Kumar termed Vajpayee's six-year rule at the Centre as the golden era of country's march towards progress and prosperity. The Vajpayee Government launched the ambitious programme to link all villages by road and provided Rs 7,000 crore for its time-bound implementation while Rs 10 crore were earmarked for Antyodaya programme in Himachal, he added.

Speaking on the occasion, former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said the Congress Government appeared to have conceded defeat even before the elections were held, by approaching the Election Commission to postpone the polls. He said that the Hamirpur rally held on April 6 this year and the subsequent defeat of the Congress in the Hamirpur Lok Sabha by-election had proved that people were firm to vote out the Congress.