New Delhi: Senior BJP leader L K Advani
on Thursday credited his party`s earlier avatar, the Jan Sangh, with
introducing coalition politics in the country and said its
leaders helped in creating an alternative to Congress which
was considered a difficult task.
"The Shiromani Akali Dal is our oldest ally. Jan Sangh
and SAD formed the first coalition government in Punjab...
later we formed a 31-party alliance which included SAD and
Ganatantra Party. The National Democratic Front formed in the
1950s made way for National Democratic Alliance when we came
to power," Advani said.
The Chairman of BJP Parliamentary Party was addressing a
function to unveil `Vikalp` -- the special issue of party
mouthpiece `Kamal Sandesh` to mark the 42nd death anniversary
of party ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay.
He said Western thinkers had pronounced that after
Jawaharlal Nehru, the Indian democracy will not survive as the
people were poor and illiterate. "People used to say that
there was no alternate to Congress, therefore, democracy in
India will not survive," Advani said.
The BJP veteran said while Jan Sangh led by Shyama Prasad
Mukherjee and Deen Dayal Upadhyay could not convert Indian
polity into a two-party system, their biggest achievement was
becoming an alternative to Congress.
He said while BJP was not in power at the Centre, its
governments in states were doing a good work. "There are some
shortcomings though," he added.
PTI
