Guwahati, Jan 8: Hitting out at the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government for its alleged failure to curb terrorism, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Nitin Gadkari on Saturday questioned the government’s delay in hanging Parliament attack accused Afzal Guru.
 “When the entire nation is expecting the government to expedite the hanging of Afzal Guru, who has been convicted in the case of attack on the Parliament, the UPA has set Shaukat Guru, Afzal Guru’s associate, in this case; free almost one year before he completes his jail term, for what they certify as Good Conduct,” Gadkari said.
 “This is a case of utter disregard for public opinion. Is this not a manifestation of the government’s soft and unserious approach towards terrorism?” he questioned, inaugurating the two-day BJP national executive meet here.
 Terming the UPA-II’s track record in fighting terrorism ‘extremely poor’, the BJP national president said, “On the Kashmir front, the interlocutors continue to be confused and unclear about their own task. There are no specific terms of reference laid down for them and hence their exercise has become rudderless.”
 He said a ‘similar rudderlessness’ prevails in tackling the Naxal issue.
 “While we all in BJP and many of our Chief Ministers are consistently asking for a common strategy and concerted efforts to fight with the Naxalite menace, UPA is speaking in many voices on every terror related issue,” he said.
 “Within the ruling party, there are elements who hobnob with the Naxals, pamper those who see India as an encroacher in Jammu and Kashmir and try to play with the sensibilities of majority community by blowing up the threat of peripheral groups to rake up the so called Hindu Terrorism,” Gadkari said.
 He demanded that the government should publish the entire data pertaining to terrorist attacks since 2004 and give details of the investigations completed, cases filed and conviction made of the guilty.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 8 Jan 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 8 Jan 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 9 Jan 2011 00:00:00 IST