BJP dusts up Hindutva ideology

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New Delhi: More than two years after it was defeated in the general elections, the BJP has returned to right-wing Hindutva ideology.

The compulsion of running the coalition NDA government led it to dilute this ideology and focus on India Shining—a change many leaders believe proved its undoing in the 2004 elections. So in late 2006 the party is raising two issues which are a clear return to its old thinking: opposing clemency for death row convict Mohammed Afzal Guru and blocking any reservation for religious minority.

The BJP will rake up the two issues in the Winter Session of Parliament, which is going to be its Hindutva platform in the election season.

Parliament was adjourned on Wednesday, but at a demonstration in Delhi's Raj Ghat the party slammed the Government on these two issues.

The party is also expected to target in Parliament the Justice Rajinder Sachar committee's report on the state of Muslims in the country, which it sees as a back-door recommendation for reservations.

In Ahmedabad, Gujarat Chief Minister and the party’s Hindutva mascot Narendra Modi asked the UPA Government to explain why it was “sitting” on the mercy petition for the Parliament attack convict.

"Why the UPA government is sitting on mercy petition filed by his (Afzal’s) family which the President has referred to the Cabinet?" Modi said on Wednesday while addressing a BJP anti-terrorism rally.

Modi said it was unfortunate that Muslim leaders had "warned" the Government of repercussions if Afzal Guru was hanged.

Modi also accused the Government in appeasing Muslims. Muslim headcount in the Army, changing the structure of Aligarh Muslim University and scrapping POTA are some of decisions to appease Muslims, Modi alleged.

The Government decision to scrap POTA was welcomed by Pakistanis. "Is it not the government's failure"? he said.

Modi dubbed Congress as "B-team" of Muslim League and said: "if you look at the demands of Muslim League during pre-independence era, Congress was functioning on the same lines and it is bent upon dividing the country once again on the lines of religion."

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