BJP lashes out at Cong for 'divisive politics'

Jaitley says UPA govt has failed in good governance

 The BJP on Saturday lashed out at the Congress for its alleged ''divisive politics'' and ''double speak'' on the Muslim quota in government jobs and  2008 Batla police encounter in Delhi.

Addressing a press conference here senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley said Congress has failed in good governance and using all tactics to garner votes in the UP elections.

“ It will be left with its tactics and will not get any votes”, he said. Jaitley referred to 4.5 per cent quota for Muslims announced by the government within 27 per cent OBC reservation.
He said for seven and half years of the UPA had ruled but  had only woken  up  on the eve of the assembly  polls to stoke the fire of division on the Muslim reservation.

Jaitley said Law Minister Salman Khurshid’s solo announcement of 9 per cent reservation for Muslims in his wife’s MLA constituency again reflected “double speak” of the Congress leaders. The announcement is bad in law and unconstitutional, he said.

Jaitley also referred to the apparent  difference of opinion between  the government and the ruling Congress party on the controversial Batala police encounter in Delhi which was described as “fake”  by Congress General Secretary Digvijay singh but was confirmed as “ genuine” by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday.

Dismissing his fellow Congress party colleague’s assessment, the home minister had said the  September  09, 2008 gun fight between security forces and terrorists in Delhi was  “genuine” and there was no scope for reopening the case.

The leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha demanded that the government  come out with “a white paper” on the issue to put an end all speculations on the encounter  which he said was “a major achievement” for the security forces against the Indian Mujahideen (IM) terror group.

By all accounts government and the Congress were working “in tandem” and in a method to “divide” society so as to reap electoral benefits in coming assembly polls, Jaitley alleged.