When unable to take a decision, leave it to the Supreme Court (SC). This appears to be the new mantra of the UPA government.
It is doing so to avoid a clash with Ram faithful and DMK
NEW DELHI: When unable to take a decision, leave it to the Supreme Court (SC). This appears to be the new mantra of the UPA government. Torn between the need to reconcile to the hard-line position of the DMK and the sensitivities of a section of the people on the Sethusamudram project, the government, in its affidavit, is likely to urge the apex court “to pass whatever appropriate orders/directions it deems fit” on the project.
A draft of the new affidavit likely to be filed before the SC in the next couple of days was circulated at the meeting of the cabinet committee on political affairs on Tuesday.
A senior UPA minister said the government had decided to withdraw the “controversial references” that “hurt the sensitivities of those who believe that the Ram Sethu is a man-made structure. “We were only implementing what was started by the NDA, nonetheless we feel that development must go hand in hand with the sensitivities of the people,” the minister said.
The decision to leave the decision to the SC has been borne out of the government’s desire to avoid giving the BJP a chance to whip up another emotive campaign. Congress chief Sonia Gandhi wants to ensure that the impression that the party is against Lord Ram does not gain ground. She has been urging the government to ensure that “all controversial references” that hurt the sentiments of the people should be withdrawn from its affidavit.
The Congress leadership is conscious of the need to not allow the BJP to brand the party anti-Ram to avoid a repeat of the events related to the Ram Mandir movement in the late 80s and 90s. The party is having to do a tight-rope walk between the stand adopted by the DMK and other Dravidian parties who favour going ahead with the project and the need to reconcile to the sensitivities of those who believe that the Ram Sethu was build by Lord Ram’s “Vanar Sena”.
The difference in perception between the Congress and the DMK was evident on Wednesday, with minister for shipping, road transport and highways TR Baalu making it clear that the “Sethusamudram ship canal project could become operational by November this year” if cleared by the SC. The Congress, on the other hand, was circumspect, saying it believed “that development must go hand in hand with the sensitivities of the people”.
j_ansari@dnaindia.net
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