Mumbai: Arun Jaitley on Saturday accused Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh of using his predecessor Atal Bihari
Vajpayee as a "shield to cover" his "historic blunder" of
holding talks with Pakistan on the terms and conditions of the
neighbouring country.
Addressing a meeting of party workers at the city BJP
office in central Mumbai this evening, Jaitley said the Prime
Minister had brought himself to a position of "weakness" by
"limiting" the country`s options on relations with Pakistan.
Referring to Singh`s speech in Parliament on the issue,
Jaitley said the Prime Minister said there was only one
alternative to dialogue and that is war with Pakistan.
"When the Agra talks failed, there was no war. Vajpayee
engaged Pakistan from a position of strength as compared to
Singh who brought the country to a position of weakness by
telling us that if we don`t talk to Pakistan then there will
be war," the senior BJP leader said.
"Vajpayee stressed on dialogue without terror while
Singh is ready for dialogue irrespective of terror," he said
asking party workers to highlight this difference to voters.
In an apparent reference to Indo-Pak joint declaration
of 2004, he said it was during Vajpayee`s tenure that Pakistan
had given a written undertaking that its soil will not be
allowed to be used against India.
Bureau Report
