Friday, September 27, 2002, Chandigarh, India





THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS
50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS
M A I N   N E W S

BJP to observe anti-terror day
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 26
The Bharatiya Janata Party today resolved to observe October 1 as anti-terrorism day and suggested issuing multipurpose identity cards and compiling a national citizen register for an effective check on terrorism.

The party, which held an emergency meeting of its national office-bearers and national executive here to take stock of the situation after the terrorist attack on the Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar, said these measures might not be foolproof, but would be quite useful in checking cross-border terrorism and infiltration effectively.

Briefing newspersons about the meeting, which was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishan Advani, BJP President M. Venkaiah Naidu said the executive adopted a resolution, saying, “The dastardly attack on the Swaminarain temple in Gujarat is a part of a larger conspiracy to weaken our country, disrupt our social fabric and bring our polity under strain by instigating social tensions. It is a calculated effort to deflect our nation’s march away from the path of development. Forces inimical to India have been doing this for a long time now”.

The resolution said, “This attack was a manifestation of the frustration of the terrorists and their mentors after their designs to disrupt the democratic and popular elections had been defeated by the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”

Mr Naidu said Mr Advani, who apprised the executive about the attack on the temple complex, had stated, “The battle has been won, but the war (against terrorism) is still on.”

The meeting appreciated the role played by the security forces, both of the Centre and the state, in limiting the loss of lives, saving the temple structure and liquidating the terrorists.

“As this is a testing time, the maturity of the Indian people is also on trial. We need to speak in one voice against this menace of terrorism. We must not allow any special tension to overtake us, since by doing so we will be falling into the trap set for us by the terrorists”, the resolution stressed.

Asking for the nation to rise above narrow political and partisan considerations, the resolution said there had to be vigilance to frustrate the evil designs of the enemy. The country needed to stand united, speaking in one voice and facing conspiratorial designs to weaken the country, and to expose Pakistan.

Mr Naidu said after the executive meeting, he had briefed Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee about the meeting and its decisions.

Replying to a question, Mr Naidu also promised to launch a tirade against illegal immigration from Bangladesh into Assam.
Back

 

Oct 2 communal harmony day
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 26
The Left parties today decided to observe October 2 as communal harmony day and condemned the terrorist attack in which 31 persons were killed and more than 100 injured at the Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar.

The leaders of the CPM, CPI, RSP and Forward Bloc expressed their grief and conveyed condolences to the families of those who were killed on Tuesday evening by two terrorists.

Those who attended the meeting included Harkishen Singh Surjit, S Ramachandran Pillai, Prakash Karat, Sitaram Yechury (CPM), A B Bardhan, D Raja (CPI), Debabrata Biswas (FB) and Abani Roy (RSP).

The leaders expressed serious concern on the fact that certain communal forces seemed determined to sharpen the communal polarisation in the country threatening the unity and integrity of India.

The leaders appealed to the people to be vigilant and not fall prey to any provocation by such forces.
Back

Home | Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial |
|
Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune
50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations |
|
122 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail |