Advani seeks PM’s clarification on Madni issue

The Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament, Mr L K Advani today strongly criticised a proposal passed by the Kerala assembly demanding the release of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) founder Abdul Nasser Madani, an accused in the 1998 Coimbatore serial blasts. 

“The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should inform the citizens how a constitutional body could give its nod to a proposal for dropping charges against Mr Madani,” he said while addressing a public meeting at Kamla Park in Bhopal, as part of his ‘Bharat Suraksha Yatra’. 

The BJP leaders who also addressed the meeting inlcuding Ms Sushama Swaraj, alleged that the Congress and Left parties were endangering the nation’s integrity by liberating persons having terror links for political appeasement with an eye on the Muslim vote bank. 

Mr Advani said, “The Centre’s UPA regime does not possess the courage, understanding and capacity to combat militancy and naxalism. Besides, it is turning a Nelson’s eye on culture.” 
Given the differences among the UPA alliance partners, he said, “the likelihood of a mid-term poll cannot be negated.”

Citing reports of conversions through inducement and coercion in the urban areas of Madhya Pradesh, the Senior BJP leader also urged the Centre to enact a comprehensive law to check religious conversion. Pointing out that many countries and several Indian states,including Madhya Pradesh, had enacted laws to check forcible conversion, he said a comprehensive law was required. 

The Constituent Assembly which debated the issue was against a legal ban on conversion and allowed the citizen to practice the religion of their choice, he said, adding later few states enacted laws to prevent forcible conversion as cases of inducement and coercion had come to light.