(rptg, fixing lead)
Lucknow, Dec 23 (UNI) Vowing to make Congress and other parties abandon their policies of ''Muslim appeasement'' and replace it with ''nationalistic ideals'', BJP President Rajnath Singh today said his aim was to strike a balance between 'politics and spiritualism'.
Addressing the National Council after it ratified him as party president for a full term, Mr Singh charged the Congress and other political parties with ''pursuing the blue-print of the Muslim League which demanded separate constituencies for Muslims.'' Noting that the AICC resolution in Lucknow had conceded this demand in 1916, thereby sowing seeds of the Partition of the country in 1947, he said they should ''force these elements to abandon their vote-bank politics and accept and pursue nationalism as their plank in the very town they had sown the seeds of Partition.'' Praising the contributions of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha L K Advani, Mr Singh said they had striven hard not just to to save democracy in the country but also within the organisation.
''They had institutionalised ideology and idealism under the guidance of personalities like Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and Deen Dayal Upadhyay through decades of sheer hard work, penance, sacrifice and organisational spirit,'' he said.
Stressing the importance of intra-party demoracy, he said this was important for a political party to establish high standards to fulfil aspirations of people. ''If the party is bereft of internal democracy, it cannot encourage democracy outside,'' he said, adding that the BJP held ''attraction'' for the youth and idealists because of its 'vibrant culture of internal democracy' in developing its human resources.
The BJP President said when the party deliberated on organisational issues they should consider things from an ''ideological viewpoint.'' ''The BJP is no ordinary political party whose actions are motivated by vested interests to capture power, but a party inspired to establish a distict ideology and political style. We are a mature workers committed to a mature ideology where people see us as a reflection of Bharatiyata and seek a solution to the national problems,'' he asserted.
Underlining that the party ran on ''collective wisdom, rather than wishes of an individual'' and leadership evolution was through a natual process, he said power and posts were a ''responsibility and not a right'' for them. ''Our mutual trust is our strength'', he remarked.
He also said the the party will have to formulate its future role by involving women and youth while expanding its base by bringing backwards, dalits and adivasis into the social mainstream.
Reiterating that the BJP was a ''mature'' party, he said its words and actions influenced national polity.
''BJP's distinctiveness had made a major contrubution in the journey to power. Therefore it has to pay special attention to its special identity and avoid getting lost in the political maze,'' Mr Singh said, adding that their ''tomorrow'' would depend on actions today.
UNI MCN VD RK1525


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