Press Statement
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:
Advani Rath Yatra: Harmful for Country
The announcement of another rath yatra by BJP leader L.K. Advani to go around the country is a deplorable step as it can result in vitiating the atmosphere. Though the BJP leader has sought to portray the yatra as one to spread the BJP’s message and the NDA agenda, at the same time he has declared that there is “an intrinsic link” between this yatra and the previous yatras conducted by him. Thus under the cover of an election campaign the BJP leadership is once again seeking to arouse communal passions in the garb of a resurgent nationalism. One has only to recall the havoc created by Advani’s rath yatra on the temple issue in 1990.
The BJP leadership cannot be oblivious of the dangerous potential of such a campaign undertaken by a person who is holding the post of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister.
The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) is strongly opposed to such a provocative campaign at the time of elections and calls upon all democratic political forces to condemn such a decision. The Election Commission should examine whether such a campaign will help the conduct of elections in a peaceful and democratic atmosphere.