2 Apr :Congress on Thursday extended an olive branch to the Left saying "our enemy" remains the BJP and its communal agenda but made it clear that Manmohan Singh’s PM candidature was a fact that needed to be recognised.
At the same time, party leader and Home Minister P Chidambaram also appealed to NCP chief Sharad Pawar not to share platform with the Third Front in Bhubaneswar on Friday as it was "opposed to Congress".
Replying to a question whether Left was a natural ally of the Congress, he said that communalism is indeed a problem and the Congress was spearheading the campaign against it in all states while the Left was doing so in three states.
"If it comes to that (coming together of those opposed to communalism), I am sure that very laws of nature will apply," Chidambaram said, indicating Congress could do business with the Left in the post-poll scenario.On the decision of NCP chief Pawar sharing dias with BJD, which recently broke away from the BJP, and the Left, the minister said, "it would be good if he (Pawar) did not share platform with parties of Third Front which are opposed to Congress."
The Minister was also categorical on the candidature of Manmohan Singh as PM. "Manmohan Sngh is the PM is a fact that everyone has to recognise," he remarked.
Chidambaram was caustic in his criticism of the BJP and described as "shameful" its decision to field one of the alleged accused of the Kandhamal violence.
"It is important to vanquish communal agenda if you want to vanquish terror. A country divided on caste and communal lines cannot fight terror. Only Congress can fight terror," he said.
Attacking the BJP, he said its agenda is divisive. "BJP cannot tackle terror. Its agenda is divisive. All actions will be coloured by religious bias. You will be soft on some people and you will be harsh on some," Chidambaram said at the AICC.
Identifying real issues in the polls, he said these were security, growth, communal harmony and peace but the issues are taking a backseat in the run up to the polls.
Rubbishing BJP’s claims that senior Congress leader and Union Minister Pranab Mukherjee was sulking, Chidambaram described him as a wise, respected and mature leader.
Turning the tables on the BJP, he said that its senior leader Sushma Swaraj has already conceded defeat.Disimissing prophets of doom for the Congress, Chidambaram insisted that the UPA was not disintegrating.
"Wisdom lies in resisting such temptation, of forecasting the future…There will be enough post poll partners and it will be a Congress-led government," the leader said.Type the title here