BJP unveils assembly poll plans

Seat sharing talks with National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ally Janata Dal-United (JD-U) in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday appeared to have run into rough weather with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying it will go it alone in all poll-bound states except Punjab where it will tie up with Akali Dal.“We will fight the elections on our own. There will be no alliance with any party except in Punjab where we will ally with Akali Dal. We will contest elections on our own in other states,” BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said.He was responding to reporters’ queries on the progress of talks between the NDA partners for the upcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa. Naidu’s remarks come amid reports that JD-U chief Sharad Yadav is unhappy over BJP announcing its first list of candidates for UP, especially in seats his party intends to contest.Polls for the 403-member UP assembly will be held in seven-phases from Feb.4. Asked about the issues on which BJP will fight elections, Naidu said, “Our main issue will be good governance, price rise, corruption, black money and agrarian crisis. Corruption will be the main issue — whether in Mayawati government or central government.”On lokpal issue, he said, “Our stand is very clear. We want a strong Lokpal. We will decide on the merit of each and every legislation on the floor of the House.”The BJP on Saturday alleged that the Congress was trying to make a place for itself in the Uttar Pradesh polls through reservation.“Congress is trying to give people the opium of reservation to hijack votes. Today, they are remembering Muslim and Jat reservation. Tomorrow, they will remember some other reservation,” BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told reporters in the national capital.Speaking to a TV news channel, BJP leader Rajnath Singh termed religion-based quota “a political stunt” and said it would only help the Muslim elite.“The government quota based on religion will benefit the elite class. Poor Muslims will not get any benefit,” Singh said.He also rejected any chance of forging an alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP) or the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). “There is no question of forging an alliance with SP, or BSP,” Singh said.With the Election Commission announcing dates for polls in five states, the Uttar Pradesh is in the focus of attention, with a major battle between the ruling BSP, Samajwadi Party, the Congress and the BJP.The Jharkhand unit of the BJP on Saturday alleged that the central government’s decision to give 4.5 per cent reservation to minorities was nothing but a move to use Muslims as vote bank in the upcoming elections in five states.“Giving 4.5 per cent reservation to minorities is a poll plank of the Congress and it wants to use Muslims as vote banks in the polls in the five states,” said Raghubar Das, former deputy chief minister and a BJP legislator.“Reservations on religious ground are unconstitutional. This is deceiving the Muslims.” “Why is the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government sitting over the recommendations of the Sachar and Ranganath Mishra committee reports?” asked Das.“The BJP is chalking out a strategy to hit the roads in Jharkhand against the central UPA government’s decision to accord reservations to minorities in name of religion,” he added.