NEW DELHI: The Janata Dal has not entered into a formal or informal agreement with Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Abdullah Bukhari in lieu of his “fatwa” asking Muslims to support the party in the fort coming elections the party president Mr S R Bommai asserted on Friday.

Asked why the Shahi Imam had chosen toback the JD Mr Bommai shot back “Ask him”.

At-an informal meeting with newspersons it was pointed out to the Janata Dal president that his party had expressed itself against the mixing of politics and religion If that was so how should One interpret his meeting the shahi Imam on the eve of elections? To this Mr Bommai replied that he had been seeing the Shahi Imam since 1987 Moreover he had always been meeting important people he added.

Had he also met any of the shankaracharyas recently? “I did not meet a shankaracharya but I did see some swamis” he told the questioner.

Did his meeting with the Shahi Imam at this juncture not amount to mixing religion with politics? “No” Mr Bommai maintained “You can judge us from our manifesto. Also please recall that the Shahi Imam had appeared on television to appeal for communal harmony.

According to Mr Bommai the Shahi Imam merely wanted adequate representation to Muslims among the Janata Dal candidates. However he had not imposed any specific candidate on them he stated.

The Janata Dal chief informed that Scheduled Castes minorities other backward class members and women constituted about 70% of the Janata Dal candidates for the polls. The proportion of OBCs alone was around 30 to 30% in the list.

If the Janata Dal came to power would the prime minster be from the backward sections? “The party will choose the prime ministerial candidate” Mr Bommai replied. Did it mean that the issue was still open? “Yes” Mr Bommai said and then hastened to add “but even Mr V P Singh may also emerge as a leader”.

Hitting out at the Congress (I) and BJP for being advocates of the oppressive status quoits forces Mr Bommai said it was the Janata Dal which at its Puri convention had set the national agenda for social transformation as a result of which even the Congress (I) and BJP were now forced to talk about the Mandal Commission recommendations. As for secularism while the BJP openly propagated “Hindutva” the Congress (I) practiced communalism in the name of secularism he alleged.

It was “shameless” on the part of the Congress (I) to talk about stability when during its own tenure grave problems like those in Punjab Assam Jammu and Kashmir as also the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid controversy and economic bankruptcy cropped up leading to gross in-Stability in the country Mr Bommai observed. He said he respected the BJP leader Mr Atal.

Bihari Vajpayee but Mr Vajpayee obviously did not carry much weight within the BJP which was under total control of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Both the BJP and the Congress (I) were trying to mislead the people by taking recourse to non-issues while the National Front-Left Front combine was fighting an issue-based poll Mr Bommai maintained.

In reply to a question the Janata Dal president said he was trying to ascertain the position of his party candidate in Bahraich Lok Sabha constituency where the Jan Morcha leader Mr Arif Mohammed Khan is contesting. “There is some mystery about the whole thing” he stated.

He said he would have appreciated it more if elections in Punjab and Assam were held simultaneously with that elsewhere in the country.

Article extracted from this publication >> May 17, 1991