After securing the resignation of Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar, the BJP on Sunday announced the launch of its Jail Bharo Andolan (court arrest programme) to take forward its campaign against the ruling coalition. This agitation programme would be carried out between May 27 and June 2 with senior leaders of the party courting arrest in different parts of the country.
The Opposition party also stepped up the attack on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh claiming that Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Bansal have been made ‘scapegoats’ to divert attention from the Prime Minister.
“The Government has totally lost the moral strength and it continues to survive on its numeric strength. It is my suggestion to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that he should introspect and decide what should be done on his part to restore the faith of the people in the entire political establishment. I think if he does an honest introspection, he will find no other option but to resign,” BJP chief Rajnath Singh said.
He asked the Prime Minister and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi whether any place was left for ethics and principles in politics or will ministers step down only after the Supreme Court makes adverse comments (against them).
The principal Opposition has also decided to hold a meeting of its national executive in Goa between June 7 and 9 to draw future programmes against the UPA. The party is also preparing a “Vision Document” to inform people about things that a future NDA Government would deliver.
“Our campaign will be positive. The vision document is being prepared and when unveiled it will let people know positives the BJP will deliver,” Singh said.
The BJP chief also appealed to Uttar Pradesh-based Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party to withdraw support to the UPA in the absence of which they will be held “equally responsible” for the misdeeds of the Congress-led coalition.
After the DMK and the TMC walked out of the UPA, the Congress-led alliance survived on outside support from 43 MPs of these two parties.
Singh also echoed leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj's view that Parliament could have functioned properly and important legislations passed, if the resignations of Bansal and Kumar had come earlier.
“We want the Food Security Bill and land Acquisition Bill to be debated and passed with some amendments,” he reiterated.