BJP TODAY

March 1--15, 2006 - Vol. 15, No. 5

BJP celebrates Deendayalji’s Punyatithi – Samarpan Divas

Change yourself to change nation: Atalji
From our Correspondent

Senior leaders and all karyakartas of Bharatiya Janata Party paid homage to Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay on February 11, 2006 at the Party’s Central Office in Delhi.

Deendayalji practised what he preached. He believed that change can be brought about in the nation only if we start changing ourselves, said former Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee while addressing BJP karyakartas and party leaders assembled at Party headquarters, 11, Ashok Road, New Delhi on the occasion of Pandit Deendayalji’s punyatithi celebrated as Samarpan Divas.

Recounting an inspiring incident involving both Deendayalji and Guruji travelling in the same train but in different coaches and different classes, Shri Vajpayee said Guruji wanted to consult Panditji and sent for him.. After the discussion ended, Panditji insisted on paying the ticket checker the amount of fare of the higher class in which he had spent a part of his journey in discussion with Guruji. He advised everyone to learn from Panditji’s life and follow his example. This minor incident had a much deeper meaning, he said. Events like this often occurred in Panditji’s life and served to inspire and educate those around him. Shri Atalji said alertness, determination and devotion to duty were among the many of his sterling qualities. He wanted to live a life of sacrifice dedicated solely to work. This is the lesson we have to learn from him, he added.

BJP National President Shri Rajnath Singh, who presided over the function, said that Deendayalji was an original thinker and philosopher. Villages, poor and farmers were the focus of his reflections. Panditji had said that it was not necessary for India to emulate any foreign system. He presented the concept of integral humanism which was in tune with Indian traditions, culture and ethos. In Panditji’s view, no country could remain united without its cultural unity, he added.

Shri Rajnath Singh also spoke about the mystery surrounding Panditji’s untimely and shocking death. Around that time Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri too had lost his life in mysterious circumstances and the suspicions so raised at that time need to be investigated, he said.

Putting the Congress and communists in the dock, he said that facts revealed in Mitrokhin Archives II had proved beyond doubt that both of them received foreign funds. Shri Singh also raised the demand for investigation into the use of these funds by Congress and communists.

He said that in spite of being a political party, the Congress was somehow trading in oil, as exposed in the Volcker Report. Just as it was trying to evade those allegations, Congress has also tried to save Quattrocchi by giving him a ‘clean chit’. Instead of taking action against Shri Buta Singh for his unconstitutional act, the UPA Government had allowed him to hoist the sacred tricolour with his hands soiled in the blood of murder of democracy on Republic Day in Bihar.

Shri Singh said that BJP had become the tallest party in India because of its unique ideology, under the dynamic leadership of Shri Vajpayee and Shri Advani. The party has become so popular and so strong that today Indian politics is sharply divided into two camps: BJP and Anti-BJP.

He said that UPA Government is adopting the policy of appeasement of minorities. Even though the Supreme Court has struck down the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University, this Government is bent upon going against the Court verdict to bestow this status on AMU. Our Constitution does not allow reservation on the basis of religion, yet the Congress Government in Andhra Pradesh is encouraging such reservations.

Shri Singh expressed dismay at the fact that the Congress-led UPA Government is besmirching the dignity of august Constitutional bodies like the Election Commission, High Courts, Supreme Court and the office of the Governor.

Speaking on the national security front, Shri Rajnath Singh said, the number of Bangladeshi infiltrators was steadily increasing and even after Supreme Court scrapped IMDT Act, the Government was trying to replace it with another similar law. The growing number of illegal immigrants has caused an imbalance which is a serious cause for concern, he warned.

Rajnathji said that Panditji always advocated politics oriented towards welfare of the State. He had always stressed that politics should focus on building the society and not merely forming a government. His views were so profound and his personality was so luminous that even though he was not an MP, the Parliament paid homage to him after his demise. The only other person who had been bestowed such an honour was Mahatma Gandhi. Paying tributes to Deendayalji, even Smt. Indira Gandhi had said that he was a skillful organiser and had devoted his life to uphold moral and cultural values.

A visibly moved Shri Rajnath Singh said that making Deendayalji’s dreams come true would be the only true homage that we can pay to him.

Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Shri Jaswant Singh said that Deendayalji’s thoughts and life were a perennial source of inspiration. In Jana Sangh, Panditji had given a new thought and style of working. His thoughts were always in tune with the times and had originality and freshness in them. This Samarpan Divas was the day to take a pledge to follow the path shown by him, he added.

Earlier, at the beginning of the function, Atalji and Rajnathji offered floral tributes to Panditji’s portrait. This was followed by a recital of Vande Matram by Smt. Pratibha Jaju. Delhi BJP President Dr. Harshvardhan welcomed everyone present and spoke about Pandit Deendayalji and his life.

A large number of leaders and karyakartas of BJP thronged the venue to attend the function.