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ShareNew Delhi: By indicting former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in the Babri Masjid demolition case, the Liberhan Commission has given a handle to the BJP to question the credibility of its report. The party has already taken a high moral position by invoking the principle of natural justice in the case of Vajpayee, who it says has been targeted without a hearing.
The fact that the commission had passed an order rejecting pleas to summon Vajpayee has lent credence to the BJP's campaign against the Liberhan findings. The petition was filed by Aslam Bhure, an activist who pleaded that the panel ask Vajpayee to appear before it.
Even in retirement, the Vajpayee factor seems to be coming in handy for the beleaguered party to question the legality of the report and ward off the likely Congress onslaught over indictment of senior leaders such as LK Advani and MM Joshi. A glimpse of the BJP's future strategy was seen in senior leader Sushma Swaraj's assertion that the report was "ill founded, perverse and against the principle of natural justice". The pointed reference was to the Vajpayee factor.
A senior BJP leader felt by indicting Vajpayee, the Liberhan Commission has provided an escape route to the party, since most of its other senior leaders have also been indicted by the panel. "Why this afterthought? If the commission had a doubt, it should have called Vajpayee and given him a chance to defend himself," Swaraj said.
This apart, the indictment seems to have come as a blessing in disguise for Advani as well. His camp could use it as a bargaining chip with the RSS to prolong his stay as leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha. Significantly, an Advani acolyte referred to the strong indictment of the RSS as the force behind the demolition to buttress his point that the former home minister was only following the scheme of things.
At the same time, the BJP is looking at the development as an opportunity to iron out differences in the party. It would certainly help divert the attention of workers from inter feuds and help galvanise the party, the Advani man said.
