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Bharatiya Janata Party president Jana Krishnamurthy Wednesday sought to dispel doubts that the central leadership was backing its Andhra Pradesh unit, which had recently demanded the creation of a Telangana state.
"Let me make it clear that the BJP central leadership has no agenda of its own. The agenda of the BJP is the same as that of the National Democratic Alliance. Though the BJP state unit had passed a resolution in 1997, for the creation of the state of Telangana, the situation has changed and now the BJP goes by the NDA agenda,'' he stated.
''Creation of the states of Uttranchal, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh was a national commitment and the BJP had supported it. But we are essentially against creation of smaller states," Krishnamurthy declared at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
On why party seniors like Venkaiah Naidu were present on the dais where a resolution was passed, Krishnamurthy said it was a meeting of the party's state unit and he was entitled to be present.
He admitted that Telugu Desam Party leader Yerran Naidu had met him on Wednesday morning on the issue. "We are old friends and we had a cup of tea," he said.
He said that the question of an alliance with Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal would be taken up by the Uttar Pradesh state unit, at its meeting in Sharanpur on June 15-16.
"The state BJP unit will take a final decision on this issue, and later it will approach the central leadership. As far as creation of Harit Pradesh is concerned, it is not on our agenda," he clarified.
On the outcome of a meeting of top leaders of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the BJP and the central leadership, he said, "We discussed all matters relating to the organisation and how to strengthen it. We reached the conclusion that as and when elections are held in the state, the BJP and its allies would come back to power with a greater majority."
Krishnamurthy urged the government to enhance duties on items having an adverse impact on agriculture, cottage industries and the small-scale sector, and sought re-negotiation of trade agreements in the next round of World Trade Organisation talks, from November 2001.
He clarified the party's position with respect to Agni missiles.
"In the present circumstances, no country should be under the false impression that its borders are secure. Inter-continental ballistic missiles are the most powerful weapons in the modern world. We wish to have friendly and peaceful relations with all neighbours, especially China. At the same time, India must be prepared for all eventualities. The development of Agni missiles, with a capability to carry any kind of weapons, is an essential requirement of that preparation," he said.
He also announced a list of new office-bearers. V Ramarao from Andhra Pradesh has been added to the list of seven vice-presidents.
Former vice-president Pyarelal Khandelwal has been made one of five general secretaries and has been put in charge of the election cell.
Former Delhi state BJP president Om Prakash Kohli has been put in charge of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Padmanabha Acharya has been entrusted with the charge of eight north eastern states, including Sikkim. Rama Rao has been asked to look after Kerala, Lakshadweep, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry.
Ved Prakash Goyal, who continues to hold charge of treasurer, has also been given the task of looking after Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa.
Kailashpati Misra will continue to look after Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar and Orissa, while Aswini Kumar will look after Andhra Pradesh.
Former president Kushbhau Thakre has been given charge of Delhi, Uttranchal and Uttar Pradesh, while Madanlal Khurana will look after Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat.
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