Samjhauta Express blast to have bearing in election: BJP

Dehradun, Feb 19 (UNI) Bharatiya Janata Party today said blasts in the Samjhauta Express was the result of Congress-led UPA Government's mismanagement in dealing with terrorism.

''The Congress is compromising national security with terrorism and looking at it in the context of vote bank politics,'' BJP Spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters here.

He said too much compromise has sent the wrong message to terrorist outfits and ts camps in Pakistan. Despite requests from Directors of Intelligence Bureau and Research and Analysis Wing to have stringent and effective laws to deal with terrorism, the government has failed to do so.

''Lives are being sacrificed on the altar of votes,'' he added.

Addressing the media on the last day for the Assembly election campaign in Uttarakhand, Mr Prasad said the incident (Samjhauta Express blast) would have a bearing in election results.

''For the people of Uttarakhand, national security is a sentimental issue as most of the people are involved with defence forces and they would vote out Congress for their failure to deal with terrorism,'' Mr Prasad added.

Commenting on the election campaign, Mr Prasad said Congress had been in a defensive but arrogant mode throughout the election campaigning in Uttarakhand. While the BJP leaders and party workers were united, this was not the case in Congress, he allowed. Mr Prasad said all Congress Ministers were sure to lose their seats this time and claimed the BJP would form a government in the state by winning a minimum of 40 seats.

Taking a dig at the Congress government in the state, he said the survey conducted by the Planning Commission has revealed that its performance in implementing the 20 point and poverty eradication programmes have been unsatisfactory.

He said price hike, unemployment, corruption and ''the immoral conduct of Congress leaders'' would make vote BJP to power with a huge margin.

UNI