NDA not to revive Janata Party experiment, says Advani

 
Though “unity among various opposition parties” under Jayaprakash Narayan’s leadership was necessary to oppose the Congress’ “corruption and authoritarianism,” now it was not just a question of political parties coming together, he said on Sunday, hinting that the NDA could not move backwards in time.

The BJP leader was speaking at a function here to release a “resurrected” version of the sensational “Shah Commission Report- Lost and Regained” on the infamous Emergency. It is freshly compiled and edited by veteran former MP and Constitutional expert Era Sezhiyan from the original three-volume report submitted in 1978.

Most speakers, including Sezhiyan, harped on reviving the “Janata experiment” as a vehicle of Opposition unity, as the unprecedented spectrum scam ensnared the present UPA government.

But Advani’s emphasis was on people coming together and rising as one voice, just as they expressed their anger against the Emergency excesses under the Indira Gandhi regime. “That mood has to be recreated today, not just political parties coming together,” he said.

Recalling how the traditional factors in Indian elections like caste and so on became irrelevant in the run-up to the 1977 Lok Sabha elections that defeated the Congress, Advani said it was made possible in Northern States by the people’s wave of anger against the Emergency excesses.

Referring to a theory advanced during the Emergency days that “bread and butter issues” were more important for India, Advani said the attempt then was to see that our democracy did not prevail.