V P Singh seeks action against Bofors guilty
Former prime minister V P Singh has called
for immediate action against those whose names had been mentioned in
the documents received from the Swedish authorities.
Speaking at a news conference in New Delhi, Singh admitted that the
alleged kickbacks in the Bofors gun deal was still an issue before
the nation. ''But the widow of a deceased person should not be
held responsible for a murder committed by her late husband,'' he
said in an obvious reference to Sonia Gandhi
He denied that he had adopted a soft attitude towards Sonia Gandhi,
and said she should spell out the Congress's policies and
programmes for which she had been campaigning.
Asked whether the United Front favoured a post-election tie-up with the
Congress for forming a government at the Centre, Singh said although no party would secure an
absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, the question of tie-ups would be decided
after the election.
He declared that no constituent of the UF or any leader was
authorised to take a decision in this regard. The UF would take a
collective decision on the post-election alliance after the poll, he
added.
Singh, however, rejected the idea of having a
national government, saying it was not feasible at the moment.
Since no political combination was likely to secure an
absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, there should be a dialogue among
the secular political parties on several national issues, he stated. These
include economy, defence, youth, unemployment, education,
corruption, and health, and the political parties should arrive at
a consensus on these issues.
Asked if the Bharatiya Janata Party could also participate in
such a dialogue, he said it was welcome provided it dropped its
''hate agenda.''
The former prime minister said the country was in a fluid situation and the
electorate should extend its fullest support to candidates who believed in
secularism and in strengthening democracy.
UNI
Elections '98
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