1. The BJP claims that the Opposition ganged up and conspired to pull down its government.

The uncontestable truth of the matter is that this government fell because one of its pre-poll coalition partners, the AIADMK, having blown hot and cold for many months, withdrew its support, informing the President of India in writing of its decision. The President, following earlier precedents like in the cases of Mr. Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral, directed the Prime Minister to seek a vote of confidence. It is this vote that the government lost, and consequently had to resign.

In the first place it was Mr. Vajpayee who sponsored the motion, and no one else. In a parliamentary democracy, when the government sponsors a confidence motion, the Opposition votes against it. To expect otherwise is to suggest the negation of the Opposition itself. When a government loses a vote of confidence it cannot turn round and charge the Opposition with failing to keep it in office. The responsibility of remaining in office is that of the government, not of the Opposition.

The question of an alternative arises only if the government loses its vote of confidence. And in this case, having lost it by a wafer-thin one vote, to expect the Opposition to have had an alternative in place is tantamount to crying foul after defeat.

Mr. Vajpayee should remember that in December 1997, as the leader of the Opposition, he chose to gang up with the Congress in pulling down both the Deve Gowda and the I.K. Gujaral governments. Did he or the BJP then have an alternative in mind? It was crystal clear that the fall of the Gujaral government meant imposing mid-term elections on the country. If the BJP is so concerned about stability, it could have abstained on the confidence motion after the Congress party withdrew support to the United Front government. Yet Mr. Vajpayee chose, without an alternative in sight, to gang up with the Congress to defeat the government. Similarly, when the BJP withdrew support from the V.P. Singh government in November 1990,, did they spare even a thought on what could be the alternative?

In fact, on every single occasion in Indian electoral history since 1977, it was the BJP that was singularly responsible for the fall of every non-Congress government. The dual membership issue raked up by the RSS led to the downfall of the Morarji Desai-Janata Party government in 1979; the withdrawal of support from the V.P. Singh government on the question of Advani's notorious rath yatra was the cause for its downfall; the BJP's unprincipled ganging up with the Congress was the cause for the fall of both the Deve Gowda and I K Gujaral governments. And on this occasion, the BJP's singular inability to maintain its pre-poll coalition is the cause for the downfall of this government.

Thus, we find the country being plunged into political instability as a result of the BJP's inability to handle its coalition. If this government fell, it fell because of its own contradictions. This in fact appeared inevitable from the beginning because the only cementing force of this coalition was the common desire to share the spoils of office.

2. The BJP claims that Vajpayee government had the people's mandate and the opposition ganged up in its lust for power.

The BJP, in the 1998 general elections polled 25.59 per cent of the vote. Alongwith its allies, it received around 37 per cent of the vote. In other words, 63 per cent of those who voted in the last elections voted against the BJP and its allies. In terms of seats, the BJP won 182, ie, a clean 90 seats less than a majority required to form the government. Everybody in the country recollects the desperation of Mr. Vajpayee and the BJP waiting for the famous letter of support from Ms. Jayalalitha. Everybody is aware of how the BJP, in its lust for power, abandoned and betrayed its pre-poll allies to forge new equations like with the TDP by giving them the Speaker's post. Everybody is aware of how the BJP embraced the very same Mr. Sukh Ram, against whose alleged corruption they stalled the 11th Lok Sabha for two weeks. The BJP, in its lust for power, used all forms of allurement, enticement, money laundering defining a new low in political morality. And, now they charge the opposition of a `gang up'? There is a limit to duplicity.

This Vajpayee government fell because of its inability to maintain its pre-election coalition. As a result, the country was plunged into instability.

These elections have come before the country, in the first place, because the Vajpayee government fell, and in the second because an alternative could not emerge. But without the fall of the Vajpayee government the question of an alternative did not arise at all. Hence, if there was anyone responsible for imposing these elections on the country, it is the failure of the Vajpayee government to keep its own flock together. It is indeed most dubious and diabolic to now suggest that since the BJP could not keep its flock together, the Opposition should have voted for the BJP government to continue.

3. Were there other forces interested in not allowing an alternative government to emerge?

Yes. It is important to note that other powerful forces were at work to prevent an alternative from emerging and thus virtually facilitated the continuing of the BJP government in a caretaker mode. While there would be many factors at play, particularly the political specificities and compulsions at the state level (like for instance, the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh), that got reflected at the national level support to the Congress party, one important factor that is being ignored is the role of imperialism and big business. The Vajpayee government has been the one in independent India, to best further imperialist interests. During the course of its tenure, the government's economic policy measures greatly facilitated the penetration of Western capital to the point of virtual control of the important levers of the Indian economy. What has been done in the course of this one year or so, in this direction of undermining India's economic sovereignty is much more than what was achieved in this direction during the last eight years of economic reform.

Many more important issues were in the pipeline to be implemented. These are the issues that are important from the US imperialist point of view to strengthen their control over India and the subcontinent. The insurance privatisation bill was one; many commitments to the WTO were to be endorsed by this BJP government. Having jettisoned its slogan of Swadeshi the moment it assumed office, the BJP was only too willing to mortgage India's economic sovereignty to US interests. The CTBT, the country was being informed was to be signed in September and an assurance to this effect was already given to the USA by the external affairs minister. The clandestine manner, in which such a commitment was made, highlights the intrigue and concealment policy when dealing with Western powers.

With such important decisions at stake, imperialism made every effort to ensure that no alternative government could be formed with the support of the Left from the outside. Because if this had happened then the gains for imperialism waiting in the pipeline would be in jeopardy, given the Left's consistent and principled opposition to these issues.

Likewise, domestically for Indian big business, this BJP-led government was actually offering a bonanza. Many a policy measure that would facilitate the loot, by the ruling classes, of the Indian people were on the anvil. It was in the interests of big business that the present government should continue so that they could derive the complete benefit from its policy. This is confirmed by the fact that the President of the CII, at the drop of the hat, keeps declaring, on behalf of the Indian industry, his support for the BJP. The huge orders for defence purchases made during the course of this year also brought into play the international arms lobby. All these forces acted in cohesion to ensure that no alternative government, which depended upon the Left, be allowed to be formed.

Hence, the sabotage of an alternative government succeeded. Political immorality knew no bounds. Coercion, allurement, and huge amounts of money laundering has reportedly taken place to ensure that the country goes in for an election rather than for an alternative government.

4. Would it, therefore, have been better to have allowed the present BJP government to continue?

On the contrary, every single day that this government was in office has meant greater vulnerability for India as a country and greater insecurity and misery for the people. The ceaseless and shameless violence unleashed against the minorities, particularly the Christians, created an atmosphere of hate and insecurity in the country. The economic policy measures of Videshi in the name of Swadeshi was jeopardising the very foundations of India's economic sovereignty . Open penetration of the RSS in the adminstrative apparatus particularly in the sphere of educational institutions, was spreading deep the poison of communal hate and fratricide. The great telecom robbery and the open charges of corruption levelled by the former adviser to the finance minister, and the former chief of naval staff, clearly exposed the BJP as a party without scruples, willing to sell the interests of the country for its own monetary and political advance.

Under Vajpayee's rule, all institutions of parliamentary democracy were systematically undermined. In fact, even the Parliament itself was bypassed on many occasions. During these thirteen months, the Vajpayee government had issued as many as 35 ordinances! So much for their earlier vitriol against `ordinance raj'.

The massive privatisation drive of the public sector during the last year, has resulted in a galloping growth of unemployment. Unheard of price increase, particularly of essential commodities, has made the life of the vast majority of Indian people intolerable. Thus on every count, this BJP government had to go at the earliest, for the sake of India and its people.

The country and the vast majority of its people were seeking deliverance from this government. Hence it is with a sense of relief that the fall of the present government is viewed.

Thus, the present political uncertainty in the country is directly the result of the BJP's inability to provide a stable government despite having the numbers in its favour.

5. The BJP claims that only the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) under its leadership can provide a stable government in the 13th Lok Sabha?

This is yet another subterfuge. With some of its allies, the BJP has announced the formation of a NDA. It has further declared that the NDA will have a common manifesto; that the BJP will not have a separate one. It is indeed unheard of that the major constituent of an alliance does not put forward its manifesto before the people. This is being deliberately done to mislead the people and to pursue a hidden agenda in case they manage to come back to power. This we have seen most eloquently during the 13 month period. It is another matter that, with the BJP's allies like the Telugu Desam, Trinamul Congress and National Conference refusing to join the NDA, the claims of "stability" sound hollow even before the exercise has begun.

Such tactics, however, are nothing new to the BJP. The communal forces have always chosen the diabolic methodology of never putting before the people their real intentions but pursuing them in a clandestine fashion. It needs to be recalled once again that, when banned following the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948, the RSS adopted a series of deceitful compromises to get the ban lifted. One of the assurances it then gave to the government of India was that the RSS would not take part in politics.

However, having assured the government that they will remain a mere cultural organisation, they were on the look-out for a political front to achieve their pernicious objective of converting a secular democratic republic into a rabidly intolerant "Hindu Rashtra." In the early 1950s, the RSS sent certain of its key functionaries to assist Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, who had resigned from Nehru's cabinet, to form a new political party; it was thus that the Jan Sangh was born. Among the people the RSS sent for this purpose were the late Deen Dayal Upadhyay, L K Advani, Atal Behari Vajpayee and S S Bhandari. Since then the Jan Sangh -- or its later incarnation, the BJP -- have assiduously sought to implement the RSS agenda and functioned as the political front of the RSS.

Subsequently, in order to gain political breakthrough that since was long eluding it, the Jan Sangh dissolved itself soon after the Emergency was lifted in 1977 and merged with the Janata Party. Through this method, they came into government for the first time. This they could achieve only by concealing their real identity to mislead the people. The deceit was evident from the fact that even though the Jan Sangh was dissolved, its members continued to retain their RSS affiliation. Their insistence on this score led to the famous dual membership controversy during that period, disrupted the Janata Party and led to the collapse of its government.

From this emerged the RSS's new political mask, the BJP. In a period when it was fashionable to seek the people's support by adopting the "left" postures, the BJP announced Gandhian socialism as its ideological tenet. Failing miserably to garner popular support even by this method, the BJP fell back on its pet communal agenda for its political survival. The rabid communal campaigns undertaken by the other RSS outfits during the early eighties paved the way for the BJP's political advance. It was such a communal agenda that ultimately led to the destabilisation of the V P Singh government and later the demolition of the Babri Masjid.

Thus, the BJP gained the support of a section of the people through such rabid communalisation of Indian politics which poses the severest threat to India's secular fabric and national unity and which has claimed the lives of thousands of innocent people through widespread and inhuman communal riots.

Having done this, the BJP is seeking to mislead the people once again now, by posturing to drop its communal agenda and, instead, adopt the programme of the NDA. The game is clear: while the BJP will resort to such deceitful manoeuvrings, the other RSS outfits like Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal will continue to wreak havoc by pursuing the communal agenda vigorously, and the BJP in power would continue to patronise the communal forces and facilitate their activities. Precisely this has been the experience of the last 13+4 months.

6. BJP claims that it alone can lead a successful coalition government based on `principled politics'.

What has been the experience of its thirteen-month rule?

The BJP's desperation to return to power is making it stoop to the lowest of depths in political opportunism. Those forces which, in the past, had lampooned the BJP's communal politics as Kamandal politics, are today being embraced by the BJP. The BJP, in turn, had castigated these former Janata Dal leaders as practicing mandal politics and spreading caste hatred. These very proponents of mandal are today sitting in the lap of kamandal.

In yet another case of unfiltered opportunism, the BJP has embraced the DMK in Tamilnadu. Not long ago, the RSS mouthpiece, Panchajanya had described Karunanidhi's DMK as the disciples of Ravana. The BJP, claiming to be the unblemished inheritor of Rama, is today embracing their arch mythological enemy to somehow come back to power.

The BJP's opportunism does not stop here. Prior to the 1998 elections, the BJP had a pre-electoral pact with the AIADMK in Tamilnadu that opposed the DMK. Similarly, in Haryana, BJP had allied with Bansi Lal's Haryana Vikas Party, opposed to Chautala's INLD. In Andhra Pradesh, it allied with Lakshmi Parvathi's TDP that opposed Chandrababu Naidu. Today, in all these states, the BJP is allied with precisely those it had opposed in 1998, ditching without any compunction its earlier allies. Likewise in Karnataka, it is allying with the same J.H. Patel whose Chief Ministerial tenure it had lambasted till recently.

It is such crass opportunism that is ruling the roost in the NDA. Even the immoral have some strength of character just as thieves have honour between them. The BJP has even shed this. And, Vajpayee is the presiding deity of this opportunistic and unprincipled pantheon. They are far removed from providing any modicum of `stability'. On the contrary, if they manage to come to power what will follow is anarchy and total lack of governance, imposing unprecedented burdens on the people and denigrating India further.

The Vajpayee government fell because of Mr. Vajpayee's inability to keep his flock together. This resulted in political instability. The potential for causing instability is at least five times more in the present National Democratic Alliance than in the previous one.

7. The BJP claims that Pokhran-II has enhanced India's position in the world and strengthened its security.

Nothing can be farther from the truth. In fact, Pokhran-II represented the unilateral reversal of India's consensual nuclear policy: of possessing the capability to produce a nuclear bomb if required, but not producing it thereby eliminating the dangers of a nuclear arms race in the sub-continent and strengthening India's moral authority to argue in international fora for the elimination of all nuclear weapons from this planet.

All that the BJP achieved was to have brought Pakistan on an equal footing with India in the international arena. Pakistan was inferior to India on various counts, particularly in the sphere of conventional weapons. But, once Pakistan responded to Pokhran-II with nuclear tests in Chagai, it achieved nuclear parity erasing India's superiority in conventional weapons. Pokhran-II, therefore, only enhanced the status of Pakistan at India's detriment.

The letter Mr. Vajpayee wrote in defence of Pokhran-II, to US President Clinton naming China as a country that possesses nuclear weapons and threatens India was an exaggerated threat perception at a time when for over a decade, the process of normalisation of relations with China was proceeding. Such a normalisation was in the interests of India and for that reason successive governments had pursued it. With this single unprovoked action, the Vajpayee government had soured these relations.

The draft nuclear policy announced by the Vajpayee government during its caretaker status, grossly violating constitutional propriety, is a recipe for a nuclear arms race in the sub-continent. This will divert vast amount of resources which are much needed for our country's development.

Following Pokhran-II, India became more vulnerable to US imperialism's pressures. The clandestine talks between Jaswant Singh and Strobe Talbott, as is now revealed by the USA, led to India accepting to sign the CTBT. This, once again, represents the complete reversal of a consensus against signing the CTBT in the country. This has, once again, been violated unilaterally by the BJP. By agreeing to sign the CTBT, the BJP is only making India more vulnerable to US pressures and granting an uneven nuclear weapon monopoly to the `nuclear five'.

The recent Kargil conflict has clearly exposed the BJP's claim that following Pokhran and the establishment of nuclear parity between India and Pakistan, there will be no more wars between the countries due to the so-called nuclear deterrence. The Kargil conflict has completely put paid to this assessment of the BJP. So confident were Mr. Vajpayee & Co. that they lowered India's vigilance on the LoC with Pakistan which resulted in the Kargil intrusion, posing serious threats to our country's security. In fact, far from strengthening India's security, Pokhran-II has created a qualitatively new situation of low intensity guerrilla conflicts that Pakistan seems to be fully exploiting.

Pokhran-II, therefore, far from strengthening India's security has created new security concerns; has created new tensions with our neighbours; has made India more vulnerable to US imperialist pressures; and lowered India's status amongst the non-aligned developing countries in the world.

8. The BJP claims that it accorded first priority to national security.

As we have seen above, the Kargil conflict has thoroughly exposed the Vajpayee government's claims in this issue. This government was singularly inefficient even in fulfilling its elementary duty of defending our country's borders. For months on end Pakistani intruders crossed over into Indian territory occupied the bunkers built by the Indian army and killed more than 400 of our jawans, according to official figures. Can there be any greater lack of concern for national security?

The Vajpayee government has been seeking to destroy the armed forces' standing of political neutrality by openly associating leading armed forces personnel in its political activities. The briefing given to the BJP's National Executive and the providing of logistics and material support to the RSS programme of `Sindhu Yatra' are instances of such a devious effort.

The unprecedented sacking of Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Bhagwat and the consequent charges levelled by the Chief have totally exposed the lack of concern of this government in matters of national security.

The exposure of `operation leach' clearly points to the involvement of the Defence Minister Mr. George Fernandes in facilitating the supply of arms both to the LTTE in Sri Lanka and the Burmese. Can the security of a country be protected by a Defence Minister who himself is involved in facilitating supply of arms to militants in other countries? The rabid anti-Christian assaults by the Saffron Brigade under Vajpayee government's patronage has worsened the situation in the North-East, thereby encouraging activities of militants there. On every score, therefore, this Vajpayee government has only increased the country's security concerns.

9. The BJP claims that it has provided a riot-free government.

Nothing again can be farther from the truth. The thirteen-month rule of the BJP was marked by an unprecedented inhuman assaults on the Christian minority. All these attacks conducted by the various arms of the RSS octopus was spread over large areas of our country. The sense of insecurity that this generated amongst the minorities has been unprecedented in the recent period.

Recollect the chronology of events during the year. First came the frenzied activity of building the temple through pre-fabricated pillars to be installed at Ayodhya at the appropriate time, irrespective of the pending judicial verdict. The BJP-led government, instead of taking any action, went to the extent of saying that it is a private activity and, hence, cannot be interfered with. Simultaneously, the Bajrang Dal announced the decision to train Hindu `patriotic' youth against cultural `invaders' and activities of missionaries. Within weeks came the large scale attacks against the missionaries. These ranged from the brutal rape of nuns in Jhabua, the forcible disrobing of a Christian missionary in Dumka to the inhuman torching of the Steins in Orissa. Elsewhere in Karnataka, communal passions were roused in the name of "liberating" a centuries old Sufi pilgrimage centre. This was followed by the Suratkal communal riots. While the Srikrishna Commission was summarily rejected, the issue of saraswati vandana, vande mataram have been used to deepen the communal divide. The year also saw the Shiv Sena's virulent campaign against the Pakistani cricket team, the obnoxious digging of pitches, the forcible stopping of the screening of the film Fire, the attacks on M.F. Hussain and the disruption of Ghulam Ali's concert in Mumbai. Simultaneously came the attacks against the Bengali-speaking population under the cover that they were Bangladeshis. This lie was nailed by the West Bengal Left Front government, who showed that the people being displaced were actually Indian citizens. Large scale infiltration of RSS loyalists in educational institutions and research bodies was accompanied by changing the syllabi and curricula with heavy communal overtones. And, finally has come this virulent campaign against the veteran actor, Dilip Kumar. A person, who so immensely contributed to Indian culture was asked to return an honour, bestowed by Pakistan, for cultural integration, as a proof of his patriotism. Can these people, the assassins of Mahatma Gandhi, have the right to issue certificates of patriotism?

More recently, utilising the excuse of the Kargil conflict, the RSS engineered the Ahmedabad riots where a large number of innocent people lost their lives.

Minority bashing and communal polarisation is the hallmark of the RSS and its affiliates during the Vajpayee government's rule. Such activities received official patronage and sanction.

The minorities in the country, today, are plagued by a growing sense of insecurity as never before.

10. The BJP claims that through its economic policies of `Swadeshi', it has improved the economy.

Once again, nothing can be farther from the truth. The Vajpayee government's economic policies have been `Videshi' in the name of `Swadeshi'.

The economy has been opened up in an unprecedented manner for foreign capital. A large number of items have been dereserved for imports which has drastically effected the domestic industry. Multinational corporations have been permitted to enter vital infrastructural areas such as power, steel, telecommunications, mining and ports. Utilising the excuse of the sanctions imposed by the USA following Pokhran-II, the Vajpayee government had embarked on a scale of reckless opening up of the country's resources to multinational corporations' loot.

The singular contribution of this Vajpayee government has been the facilitation it provided for foreign capital and MNCs to acquire control of domestic industry. This Vajpayee government has waived a former requirement that in cases of joint ventures, if the MNC wishes to start independent operations, the concurrence of the domestic partner is required. As a result, we have today, instead of Ford-Mahindra -- Ford India --, instead of Premier Automobiles, we have Fiat India. The Japanese MNC Honda has opened its independent unit. Thus, in the name of `Swadeshi' we have unfiltered access to MNCs to take over our economy. This is the reality of BJP's `Swadeshi'!

The Vajpayee government has excelled all other previous governments in the sphere of privatisation. The public sector is virtually being decimated and, in one single year, the Vajpayee government had targetted to raise a sum of Rs. 20,000 crores through privatisation of the public sector. This is the largest amount ever visualised by any government in a financial year since new economic policy was initiated.

Totally ignoring public outcry and well reasoned arguements, the Vajpayee government went ahead and amended the Indian Patents Act. This will not only make India more vulnerable to the pressures by multinational corporations but will have the immediate effect of a galloping hike in the prices of many commodities especially drugs. Ironically, it was the same BJP that had earlier, when it was in the opposition, supported the Left in blocking such an amendment in the Rajya Sabha. Now, it is the very same BJP that has committed this somersault!

The `Swadeshi' mask of the BJP was totally exposed when it proposed to privatise the insurance sector. Once again, it was this very same BJP that supported the Left in the Parliament in 1996 forcing the then Finance Minister to withdraw such a proposal. But now, ignoring the signatures of one and a half crores of people who opposed such privatisation, the Vajpayee government was planning to go ahead with it. It, however, could not succeed due to the fall of its government.

During the course of these thirteen months, the country has become more indebted and the Finance Minister, in his caretaker mode, has actually admitted that the country is virtually in a debt trap. When the present Finance Minister assumed charge, we had said, that in his first innings he mortgaged India's gold. In his second, he is preparing to mortgage India itself. Unfortunately, the Finance Minister, himself, admits today that this is what has happened under the Vajpayee government.

11. The BJP claims that the fundamentals of the economy have grown stronger under its rule.

This claim was substantiated by Vajpayee at his independence day speech at the Red Fort. Amongst other claims, he `informed' the country that (a) foodgrain production has reached a record level, (b) the inflation rate currently is the lowest in the last two decades, and (c) foreign exchange reserves have crossed 30 billion dollars.

Let us examine each one of them.

The growth rate of foodgrain production has been alarmingly lower in the decade of the nineties, particularly between 1990 and 1997, than in earlier decades. From the mid-seventies till 1990, the annual increases in foodgrain output was well over 3 per cent on average. But for the period from 1990 to 1997, the annual rate was less than 1.5 percent. Since the initiation of the new economic policy, which Mr. Vajpayee is pursuing with greater vigour, the rate of foodgrain output has drastically fallen posing serious problems for India's food security. In other words, the foodgrain output should have crossed the 200 million tonne mark much earlier. To conceal this truth and claim record output only exposes the BJP's refusal to address itself to a vital question facing the country: food security.

As far as the inflation rate is concerned, it must be clarified that a fall in the rate does not represent a fall in prices. Inflation rates only inform the rate of increase of prices. In a situation where prices rise phenomenally in one year, the rate of increase in the next year would be low. This is precisely what happened in 1998 and 1999. The year on year, rate of increase in the wholesale price index in November 1998 was 8.8 per cent for all commodities but as high as 22.4 per cent for food articles. This was reflected in the run away inflation in commodities like onions which sold at over Rs. 100 a kilo in 1998. In 1999, therefore, these sky-rocketing levels through which the BJP's social base, the unscrupulous traders, made whopping profits could not be sustained. If the inflation rate is low this year, it is because the rate was extremely high in the previous year. Thus, the low rate does not provide any relief to the common man. On the contrary, a positive rate of inflation only tells that the price level is higher than last year.

Administrative Price Hikes, January 1999

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Earlier Now

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Rice per kg Rs. 5.50 Rs. 9.05

Wheat per kg Rs. 4.50 Rs. 6.50

Sugar per kg Rs. 11.40 Rs. 12.00

Urea 50 kgs Rs. 183 Rs. 200

Cooking gas (cylinder) Rs. 130 Rs. 146

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As far as the mass of the people are concerned, it is such hikes in administrative prices that adversely effects their livelihood.

In any case, low inflation rate per se does not reflect a healthy economy. This can happen due to decreased domestic demand due to industrial recession. And, this is precisely what is happening today in India. Under BJP's rule, low inflation rate actually conceals the recession in the economy leading to larger unemployment.

As far as the foreign exchange reserves are concerned, it needs to be recollected that the Vajpayee government last year mobilised foreign capital through its resurgent India Bond Scheme. This money was meant for the much needed infrastructural development. The BJP was patting itself on the back for exceeding the target. However, nothing of this was reflected in any major expenditures to develop the infrastructure. At the same time, the country continues to pay a heavy interest on these bonds. The more than 4 billion dollars thus collected have added to the foreign exchange reserves. But this has been hardly of any use for the country's economy.

Further, much of this foreign exchange reserves is what is called `hot money', ie, money which has flown into the speculation market. This is money that cannot be put to any use since the speculators may want to withdraw at any point of time. It is this reason that forces the government not to utilise these huge resources for the country's development. For, if they are put to use, then when the international speculators seek to withdraw their money, the country will have to return this by selling its assets. This is precisely what happened earlier in Mexico and more recently in the South-East Asian countries.

Hence, to boast of large foreign exchange reserves does not, in any case, reflect an achievement. This money can hardly be of any use for the economy.

The highlight of the BJP's performance in developing India's infrastructure is reflected in the vast amounts of money that remained unspent. This reflects the BJP's complete lack of concern towards strengthening the country's economic fundamentals.

Shortfalls in Central Plan Outlays, 1998-99

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Shortfall Rs. crore Precent

Shortfall

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Agriculture allied sectors 1,087 28.1

Rural development 446 5.5

Irrigation & flood contro l29 7.8

Energy 6,103 20.3

Industry & minerals 3,596 31.3

Transport 1,789 11.1

Communications 1,411 9.5

Science, tech, environment 377 13.6

Gen eco services 70 6.9

Social services 1,770 11.1

General services 27 9.5

Total plan outlay 16,705 15.9

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12. The BJP claims that it has provided a scam-free government.

This claim can only be termed as the joke of the century. The telecom scam has revealed this government as a most unscrupulous one. All the Constitutional authorities of the country, viz -- the President, the judiciary, the Election Commission and the CAG -- had put a question mark on the decision of the caretaker Vajpayee government to shift from a licence fee regime to a revenue sharing regime for private telecom operators. Yet, Mr. Vajpayee directly holding charge of the Communication portfolio, after removing Mr. Jagmohan since he did not comply, pushed ahead with this change. This has resulted in a loss to the national exchequer to the tune of nearly Rs. 50,000 crores over a 7-10 year period. In the current financial year, the country would lose nearly 1,500 crores.

Why such a loss? Obviously, those who gain from this change have greased the Vajpayee government substantially. A huge kickback is involved -- many many times more than the amount involved in the Bofors scam.

Since this government assumed office, there have been a series of dubious deals that have taken place. The Vajpayee government allowed the Japanese multinational Suzuki to virtually take over the Maruti Udyog Ltd. Obviously, the handing over of a prime asset of the country to a multinational had a price.

Similar deals have taken place in the power sector. Contracts were given to multinational corporations when the bids by Indian public sector were lower. This has happened in the case of NTPC's Talcher plant and Neyveli Lignite Corporation.

The privatisation of the Indian Airlines and Air India and the decision to buy some totally unnecessary fifty-seater planes, which the Indian Airlines Board had opined against, also smacks of huge kickbacks.

The Vajpayee government is, thus soaked with charges of graft and corruption. This is the only area in which Mr. Vajpayee has displayed greater efficiency. This government has accomplished more in the sphere of corruption in a short period than any other. They have done in 13+4 months what others could not do in five years.

13. The BJP and the NDA claim that only they have a capable Prime Ministerial candidate.

At the outset, it needs to be recollected that Mr. Vajpayee is yet to conclusively answer charges of his dubious role during the freedom movement especially the 1942 Quit India movement. The BJP's bombastic claims that Mr. Vajpayee is a freedom fighter jailed during the Quit India movement has been thoroughly exposed by both the electronic and print media (see Frontline, February 20, 1998).

Further, Mr. Vajpayee, on one hand would like to be seen as the "reasonable" face of the BJP. On the other hand, he writes in the Organiser (in May 1995) that the BJP seeks to carry out "parishkar" (cleansing or purification) of Muslims in India. Have the people of India given him the mandate to "purify" 12 per cent of the Indian population? Does he deserve to be given such a mandate? Mr. Vajpayee now claims that his article was wrongly reported in the Organiser. But a perusal of the back issues of the Organiser would show that Mr. Vajpayee had never retracted his desire to purify 12 per cent of the Indian population.

Governance has to do with policies that are pursued by the government and not personalities. The thirteen months of the Vajpayee rule have clearly demonstrated the lack of governance highlighted by the constant decisions to the roll-back the decisions taken earlier. This has, indeed, been a roll-back government.

What India needs is a Prime Minister who is able to pursue pro-people policies. Decisions that will improve the living conditions of its people, decisions that will strengthen the Constitutional foundations of secular democracy, decisions that will protect the unity and integrity of India's diverse and plural society.

Instead, during these 13+4 months, we have had a Prime Minister who displayed his incapability to take precisely such decisions. India does not need someone as a Prime Minister who will remain a mute spectator when the Babri Masjid is being destroyed, withdrawing himself to compose poetry. India needs a Prime Minister who, in such situations, would be able to intervene and stop the destruction of India's secular foundations.

India does not require a Prime Minister who, when inhuman atrocities are being perpetrated by fanatical Hindu fundamentalists against the Christian minority, calls for a national debate on religious conversions. India requires a Prime Minister who can firmly intervene to uphold the law of the land and take firm action against such criminals.