Congress questions "BJP's new love for Jinnah."

New Delhi, Mar 20 (UNI) Describing it as "Bharatiya Jinnah Party", the Congress today wondered why the BJP had suddenly started finding virtues in Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah and attributing all his actions and deeds to the Congress.

Reacting to certain remarks made by former External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh at a function here yesterday to release BJP leader L K Advani's book 'My Country My Life,' AICC Spokesman Abishek Manu Singhvi said it was strange that a book release function had been converted into a "political bashing session." "If you want to berate the Congress, you must get facts and history correct," he said, while alleging that the BJP, Mr Singh and Mr Advani wanted to re-write history.

Dr Singhvi questioned the reported assertion of Mr Singh that all blame for Jinnah's action, inaction and deed were attributable to the Congress.

"What has happened to the Prime Minister in waiting (Mr Advani) and his party which have started finding virtues in Jinnah all of a sudden and none in the Congress Party ?" he asked.

In this context, he pointed out that "after a spirited defence of Jinnah's secularism by Mr Advani, we now have Jaswant Singh's spirited attribution of all Jinnah deeds to the Congress Party," he said describing the BJP as the "Bharatiya Jinnah Party." "Why this great urge of the BJP to defend Jinnah to give a clear chit to the founder of Pakistan, he asked.

Dr Singhvi said Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru were fighting to maintain unity and integrity of the country after Jinnah launched the Muslim League.

Complaining that Mr Singh and Mr Advani deliberately and consciously wanted to ignore the contribution of the Congress to Indian freedom struggle, he asked where were the Sangh Parivar and the Hindu Mahasabha and their forefathers during 1900-1950. "What is there footprint in the Indian Freedom Movement?,'' he asked.

Dr Singhvi said, "the pro-Jinnah forces whom we see today are none other than those anti-Gandhi groups who assassinated the Father of the Nation." In this context, he said the seeds of partition were sown by none other than the "forefathers of the Sangh Parivar".

"For them Indian nationalism is not important. What is important for them is fighting a section of the citizens," Dr Singhvi said, in a clear dig at the BJP.

UNI SH YA DB1822