M A I N   N E W S

Missing on Cong’s guest list for Nehru’s b’day event: BJP & Co
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

Among those the Congress has invited are “secular” parties, including UPA’s former allies the NCP and TMC and Dravidian parties — the DMK and the AIADMK. The Shiromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena and others have been kept at bay. Asked what message the party wanted to send with this exclusion, particularly of PM Narendra Modi, at a time when it had invited political parties from world over, Sharma said, “We are a political movement and are organising the event in our capacity as that. We will decide what is right and who is to be invited.”

The Congress’ move comes close on the heels of the PM reconstituting the government committee for commemoration of Nehru’s 125th birthday celebrations with neither Congress president Sonia Gandhi nor vice president Rahul Gandhi in it. The PM had also skipped the event held on October 31 to commemorate former PM Indira Gandhi’s assassination. Modi marked the day as Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary. Congress leaders admitted Modi exclusion from invitees’ list was deliberate. “It is for them to think about courtesies. They did not even give us the post of the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha,” said a senior leader. The flailing Congress, through this event, seeks to make a global statement on the relevance of Nehru’s secularism. The idea is to pitch the ideals of inclusiveness and secularism against the ruling BJP’s so-called majority politics which the Congress calls “divisive”. While the government will have its own function (though the PM will be absent) to mark Nehru’s birthday on November 14, the Congress will on November 13 hold a massive show of strength at Talkatora stadium where Sonia Gandhi (on the lines of Modi’s recent pledge on Sardar Patel’s birthday) will administer an oath of rededication to Nehruvian vision to her party members.

Cong Diwali on Nov 14

The Congress has asked all its state, district and block units to light up offices for three days starting November 14 to celebrate Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru’s 125th birth anniversary

We are inviting only those who believe in Nehru’s thoughts and ideals…who respect Nehruvian vision of a multicultural and multilingual society, and have faith in democracy. The BJP and RSS don’t fit in that category — Anand Sharma, congress’ senior spokesperson.