Birthday Special :
Importance of regional parties in the eyes of former PM Vajpayee
Pawan Kumar Bansal
Country is celebrating birthday of former, Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee as Governance Day. As a seasoned politician, he had visualised the importance of regional parties in the national politics long back.
This makes me recall the visit of Vajpayee, thirty five years ago, to Narwana town in Jind district of Haryana. It was then, I had asked him, as the reporter of Indian Express, as to why regional parties were coming into power in more and more states. And their tally of MPs in the Lok Sabha too had been witnessing upswing. “It is due to the fact that national parties have failed to understand the regional aspirations,” he said with spontaneous ease.
The honesty and truth of his observation stood vindicated as he successfully led NDA Government at the Centre in alliance with so many regional parties.
Vajpayee had a long and personal association with Haryana Politics and its politicians. This scribe had several journalistic interactions with him during his visits to Haryana.
He was a fan of former Deputy Prime Minister and a towering political figure of Haryana, Chaudhary Devi Lal. However, after mayhem in Meham during 1990 by-election of Meham Assembly constituency, he described the incident as a blot on the beautiful face of our democracy. He was deeply perturbed over the large-scale violence during this election. For Haryana Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala was contesting against Anand Singh Dangi supported by the panchayat of Meham Chaubisi.
At the same time, he had strong dislike for former Chief Minister Bansilal. During the 1996 Haryana Assembly elections,Vajpayee was opposed to his party’s alliance with Bansi Lal led Haryana Vikas Party.
At a press conference held at Canal Rest House, Rohtak, Vajpayee had told this scribe that his party should never form alliance with supporters of Emergency, obviously referring to role of Bansi Lal during the Emergency but his opinion was overruled by the then in-charge of Haryana BJP affairs and now the PM Narender Modi.
Sushma Sawraj and LK Advani, who had clinched the alliance with Haryana Vikas Party leading to formation of alliance government headed by Bansi Lal. It is also a bitter truth that after two and half year BJP had toppled this government with the blessings of Vajpayee and help of the dissidents within Haryana Vikas Party.
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Pawan Bansal, Senior Journalist , Gurugram
pawanbansal2@gmail.com
Phone No. : +91-8882828301
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