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Sonia, PM thank people for making right choice

Last Updated 16 May 2009, 20:32 IST

But, as he seems set for a second term, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought to work with the leftists in the spirit of camaraderie.

The poll-results show that the Congress might not need the support of its estranged allies and the leftists to form the next Government. But as the Congress president Sonia Gandhi thanked people for reposing faith on her party, Singh apparently wanted to send out the message that he would like to take along all secular forces in the political struggle against the BJP and its brand of communalism. Singh not only reached out to the communists and other secular parties, but also sought their support for a stable government at the Centre.

“I expect all secular parties to forget past disputes and come together to give the country a strong, stable and purposeful government,” Singh told journalists at Gandhi’s residence at 10 Janpath here. The Prime Minister was asked if he would like to work with the leftists during his second term too. “We will work in a spirit of comradeship.” The Congress president said that people of India knew what was good for them and they always made the right choice. She said that people had voted for her party because of the good governance, development and social welfare programmes by Prime Minister Singh’s Government.

The CPI (M), CPI and other leftist parties had supported Singh’s Government since 2004 till the fiasco over India-US nuke deal strained the relationship in 2008. The leftists withdrew support from the UPA Government forcing the PM to face a trial of strength in the LS on July 22 last year.

The communist leaders hinted during the run-up to the LS polls that they could again consider supporting a Congress-led-Government only if the ruling party replaces Singh with someone else as its prime-ministerial candidate. The Congress, however, steadfastly projected Singh as its candidate for the Prime Minister’s post.

Singh, however, did not strike back to the leftists even as his party seemed set to score much better than its 2004 tally. Neither did he attack his principal challenger and BJP’s prime ministerial candidate L K Advani, with whom he had a very bitter war of words in the early days of campaign for the just-concluded LS polls. “We invite all opposition parties to use this moment to convey to the world that at a time when the world is in serious difficulty, we stand one as a nation,” he said.

The PM apparently referred to the current economic crisis as “the serious difficulty” faced by the world and thus indicated that halting the downturn and reviving the economy would top the priority of the next government. The Congress during the campaign claimed credit for prudent economic decisions that ensured that India was among the least affected by the impact of the downturn and also promised measures for revival after the polls.

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(Published 16 May 2009, 20:32 IST)

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