MP CM flays Centre over terror, inflation, Muslims issue

Bhopal, Oct 3 (UNI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today fired a broadside at the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime at the Centre for failing miserably in combating terrorism and spiralling inflation, besides causing ''acute heart-burning'' among the Muslims.

In an interview to UNI here, the BJP leader said, ''We used to talk about the cross-border infrastructure of terrorism. We mobilised the international community against it during NDA's rule.

But, the present government's entire approach is to take it as a domestic, internal, home affair.

''This was causing an 'acute heart-burning' among ordinary Muslims, as it put them under tremendous pressure and causing a 'serious divide' too.'' ''If there are internal problems, we need to attack them like we successfully did in MP in the case of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Yet, we must not lose the perspective,'' Mr Chouhan observed.

''To me, both the spiralling inflation and mushrooming terror activities are a barrier. Sadly, the Centre failed miserably on both the fronts. The UPA government's problem is that it fails to see the problem...those who were keen on globalising India now state that the American crisis will not affect India. With this ostrich-like approach they are running the country. Same is true with the terror question,'' he underlined.

As MP races towards the year-end Assembly polls, the Chief Minister portrayed his regime as one that was addressing problems of all sections of the society, did not go into even a single day's overdraft and initiated a long-term scheme for girls.

Slamming the erstwhile Digvijay Singh-led Congress government in the state, Mr Chouhan said, ''That government could organise a polemical 'adhiveshan' only for Dalits. Do you call that mono-dimensionality a focus? And even that single-mindedness about Dalits was not effective enough in bringing about intended results.

Instead it created a caste war situation in an otherwise peaceful and congenial MP.'' MORE UNI PKJ-AC ATI RAI0929