BJP to intensify campaign against UPA govt

After stalling Parliament proceedings on the coal allocation issue, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday made it clear that this will be followed up with countrywide protests against the government on the corruption issue.

Party general secretaries during a meeting chaired by BJP Parliamentary Party Chief L K Advani were told to chalk out an elaborate programme of taking the issue of corruption to the people across the country.

The on-going controversy over coal block allocation, which the CAG estimated resulted in a loss of Rs 1.86 Lakh crore, will be the main thrust of these protests at the district and state levels, party sources said.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and her Rajya Sabha counterpart Arun Jaitley were also present in the meeting.

Meanwhile, meetings between the main Opposition and the government as well as with non-Congress parties were held in Parliament but there was no end to the deadlock.

Deputy Leader of BJP in Lok Sabha Gopinath Munde and Shahnawaz Hussain met Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde to discuss the issue.

Swaraj also met Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar. However the issue discussed was not the impasse in Parliament but the selection of a new Secretary General for the Lower House as T K Vishwanathan's term is ending next month.

AIADMK leader M Thambidurai held a meeting with Advani and Swaraj over the coal allocation issue. The two parties are coordinating with each other on the floor of the House.

BJP sources said the party will continue to force adjournments for the remaining period the monsoon session of Parliament.