Simla, Feb 21: Once again, it`s the concern for low level of campaigning that overrides people`s issues at electioneering, with none other than the Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee himself cautioning political parties against indulging in public discourse which might hurt the image of the nation. Expressing anguish at the falling standards, Mr Vajpayee on Thursday said there is no limit to which you can go if you fall into an abyss; an abyss of personal antagonism in politics that provokes mud-slinging on each other. Though, Mr Vajpayee was particularly pained at the Youth Congress slogans in Madhya Pradesh, which suggests that Mr Vajpayee is a beef-eater, he appealed to all political parties not to indulge in character assassination.

So disturbed is the Prime Minister at the slogan - Gau hamari mata hai, Atal Bihari Khata hai - that he has written a letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, asking if she approved of such cheap tricks, so low as to malign the head of the government with false propaganda. Mr Vajpayee revealed he had not got a response from Ms Gandhi and added: "Halka, ganda prachar nahin hona chahiye. Itna ghatiya nahi ki desh ka matha neecha ho. Hamari sanskriti kharab nahin honi chaiye." To buttress his charge against the Congress, Mr Vajpayee pointed out how Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had levelled wild charges of corruption against his Himachal counterpart Prem.

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Kumar Dhumal. He said, "I told Amarinder after Dhumal`s properties were raided in Jalandhar that it might boomerang. I warned him against going so low to win elections. Then he said nahi nahi galti se ho gaya." Mr Vajpayee was upset that Congress Chief Ministers were unnecessarily poking their nose into affairs of other States.

But the Congress appears to have taken a cue from the BJP`s rulebook and decided to go offensive. Congress leaders were quick to recall how Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi won elections and how he had muddied the Himachal waters by digging up sex scandals involving Congressmen. Himachal Congress leaders have made corruption a big issue and spokesperson Anand Sharma everyday asks Dhumal to respond to the charges of corruption. In fact, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi raised this issue in Shimla soon after the Prime Minister`s rally. Addressing a public meeting, Mr Jogi repeated the allegations levelled by Mr Amarinder Singh, saying he would provide ticket to anybody who wanted to visit Jalandhar to verify what Mr Dhumal had accumulated. Mr Jogi went a step further, recalling a charge made by BJP`s former ally Mr Sukh Ram, that most of the jobs given by the Dhumal government were to Punjabis, not Himachalis. That the Congress won`t hold its horses anymore was evident in the manner its leaders were targeting the BJP`s pet issues - Hindutva and terrorism. Mr Jogi narrated juicy stories before the audience to analyse how the BJP had betrayed even Lord Ram and told a Press conference that the BJP`s track record in fighting terrorism was pitiable. Mr Jogi did not only talk about attack on Parliament, the shameful Kandahar episode and increased terrorist strikes at different places, he went into details of how the Government kept the armed forces on the border for months together and withdrew them under pressure. Mr Vajpayee was threatening an "aar-ya-paar ki larai." The aggressive intents of the Congress manifested themselves again in the promptness of Mr Jogi in confronting the Prime Minister`s claim that Himachal had the highest literacy rate in the country and the Dhumal government should take pride in it. Mr Jogi said it is a matter of shame, not pride that Himachal had the highest percentage of educated unemployed in the country, too. No matter how much the Prime Minister wants both the political parties to behave and maintain decorum in campaigning, the temperatures are bound to soar in the coming days. Congress president Sonia Gandhi is arriving in Himachal on Friday for a two-day campaign and sources here reveal that she will mount a frontal attack on the Vajpayee Government for misleading the nation through its false propaganda on Hindutva and terrorism. Other Congress leaders, be it Mr Anand Sharma or AIIC general secretary incharge of State, Mohsina Kidwai, all are aggressive this time, perhaps trying to make up for the party`s wavering attitude in Gujarat. Hindutva is certainly not an issue in this hill State but the Congress is putting things straight on the issue of terrorism. Little wonder, the BJP campaign, this time, is so different; not woven around Hindutva and terrorism mainly.