UPA government suffering from crisis of credibility: BJP

Attacking the UPA government, BJP today alleged that it is suffering from a crisis of credibility and wondered why "different yardsticks" were being applied for former Telecom Minister A Raja and Home Minister P Chidambaram in the 2G case.

Addressing the BJP national executive meeting, party president Nitin Gadkari said, "The government today suffers from the crisis of credibility. Its domestic credibility stands tattered while its international credibility has suffered a serious dent. Corruption has broken all records.

"...If the prime minister is so much indifferent to the problems and crisis faced by the government, then why is he in office? He always has a hallmark reply that he did not know anything," BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad told reporters quoting Gadkari.

Referring to the 2G case, he said there should be no victimisation but no one should be spared regardless of the stature of the person if there is evidence.

"Why is Raja in Tihar and Chidambaram outside? This only demonstrates that different yardsticks are being adopted. Inspite of voluminous evidence proving the culpability and complicity of Chidambaram in the case, different yardsticks are being followed. The CBI is not being allowed to probe this," Gadkari said.

The BJP chief said if there was evidence against the prime minister in the 2G scam, then he should also be investigated.

On the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections scheduled next year, Prasad said that Gadkari told the Executive Council that the party will have no alliance either with BSP or SP. Gadkari said though the BJP's strength in Uttar Pradesh was increasing, the party would prefer to sit in the opposition if it did not get the numbers.

"We have to save UP. We will not align either with the BSP or SP under any circumstances. If we get power, we will provide good governance. We will sit in opposition if we do not get the numbers," he said.

Gadkari criticised the Planning Commission affidavit on Below Poverty Line and accused the government of playing "politics of statistics".

"The whole desire was to include the excluded but now it is the to exclude the included. A joke is being played on the poor people," he said.

Calling LK Advani as the "epitome of probity, credibility and transparency" in the country's polity, Gadkari said the party will fully support his yatra against corruption.

On Telangana, the BJP chief accused the government of not being serious on the issue and said the party would support a bill to create a separate state bifurcating Andhra Pradesh if it is brought in Parliament.

Questioning the arrest of two former BJP MPs and a former aide of Advani in the cash-for-votes scam, Gadkari said everyone knows who the beneficiaries of the scam are.

The BJP chief also criticised the Centre's "insensitive" approach towards Manipur, saying it was not taking measures to end the blockade of National Highway. "The insensitive approach of the government has crossed all limits," he said.