Shiv Kumar
Tribune News ServiceMumbai, June 24
After his one-line remark today that he had dominated the headlines enough, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee clarified that his remark made in jest was taken too seriously by journalists.
Delivering his concluding address on the last day of the three-day National Executive meeting of the BJP, Mr Vajpayee indicated that his poor knowledge of Marathi caused confusion among mediapersons and party cadres alike.
“He only said enough to the loudly cheering people in Marathi,” party president Venkiah Naidu told reporters at the daily media briefing. He added that the former Prime Minister was only expressing his satisfaction at having led the country for six years in a row.
According to a senior party leader who took notes of Mr Vajpayee’s 45-minute speech, the former Prime Minister blamed the confusion on his love for Marathi. “Mein majak kar raha tha. Arth phail gaya, anarth kar diya”, Mr Vajpayee is said to have remarked in his trademark Hindi verse.
Mr Vajpayee then assured party cadres that he would be leading the BJP’s election campaign for the Assembly elections in Maharashtra later this year.
Dwelling on the NDA’s defeat in the Lok Sabha poll, Mr Vajpayee said the result came as a nasty surprise though he did have niggling doubts about the outcome.
Giving a direction for the party’s future election campaigns, Mr Vajpayee said electioneering must henceforth be fought on grassroots issues. He however defended his regime, saying the improvements in road connectivity, telecom and other reforms benefited the country.
Proferring an olive branch to the extremist elements in the party, Mr Vajpayee in just one line said there was no difference between “Hindutva” and “Bharatiyata”.
