RJD for putting up common candidates

New Delhi, Oct 8: The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) today decided in favour of putting up common candidates with like-minded parties in the coming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Punjab.

For bypolls in Bhagalpur, Nalanda and Koderma too, the party was for an understanding with like-minded parties.

RJD National Executive, which met here today, authorised party chief Lalu Prasad to hold consultations with other parties in this connection, Party leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh told newspersons here while briefing them about the National executive deliberations and decisions.

He said candidates for the bypolls will be announced soon.

Mr Prasad said the party passed a political resolution expressing its commitment to fight communal forces, which, it said was a great threat to the national stability.

The party national executive noted with satisfaction that under the UPA government, the country was witnessing ''an ebb in communal tension''.

While condemning terrorism of all kind, it called upon the government to deal with the menace with firm hands but cautioned against the ''conspiracy to identify any particular religion or community with terror acts. It demanded that the UPA should act firmly to root out such a conspiracy.

The party praised the UPA government for giving equal treatment to all states as in contrast to the ''step-motherly treatment'' given to some states under the NDA government.

The steps taken by the UPA government to ensure social justice were also lauded by the party while giving a part of credit to its president Lalu Prasad for influencing government policies in that direction.

The decision to ensure 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in elite institutions was hailed as ''historic'' by the RJD , and the party demanded its speedy implementation.

UNI