Cong must be large-hearted for allies, best equipped to lead alliance against BJP: Tejashwi Yadav
New Delhi, Jan 20: The Congress is "best equipped" to lead the opposition's charge against the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said Sunday, asserting that the grand old party will have to handle its leadership role with "large-heartedness" and accommodate regional parties.
Yadav also hailed the Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh and emphasised that his "courtesy call" meetings with Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati post the tie-up should not be construed as a "pressure tactic" aimed at the Congress.
In an exclusive interview to PTI, the Rashtriya Janata Dal leader said since the Congress is India's oldest and currently the second-biggest political party, with a pan-India presence, it is in a very strong position to win the maximum number of seats among the opposition parties.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, among the prospective opposition grand alliance parties, the Congress had won 44 seats, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress won 34, the Samajwadi Party won five, while the RJD had bagged four seats.
"I don't find anything wrong if the Congress plays a pivotal role in forming the alliance or taking the leadership role of the alliance into the elections. But having said that, they have to accept that each state has different ground realities," Yadav said when asked if for a strong opposition coalition, the Congress has to be the pivot.
The Congress, being the party with national acceptance and maximum footprint in the opposition, is "undoubtedly best equipped" to lead the opposition's charge against the Bharatiya Janata Party or the National Democratic Alliance, the former Bihar deputy chief minister asserted.
"However, the Congress will have to handle their leadership role with large-heartedness and play a proactive role by accommodating regional parties with their agenda.
"In states where Congress doesn't have a robust base, it must allow regional outfits to occupy the frontal-attack position against the BJP," Yadav said, emphasising that regional parties have a greater ability to transfer votes.
The concentration is on winnability, hence the coalition must be decided state-wise and seat wise, said the 29-year-old son of former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad.
Every party will have to compromise or lend space to other parties depending on the situation in a particular state for forming a winning alliance, Yadav said while replying to a question on whether the Congress has to be more giving to regional parties to strengthen the opposition coalition.
Asked if leaving out the Congress from the SP-BSP tie-up will impact the opposition's national level coalition, he said the people of India feel they have been "duped badly" and have made up their mind to get rid of the propagandists for their own well-being.
The people are wise enough to understand which bloc can be their best bet to defeat the BJP, he said.
On whether the SP and BSP will be a part of the mahagathbandhan' in Bihar, the RJD leader said principally all opposition parties are together against the BJP-led alliance.
"You don't always need seats to contest to prove that you are part of an alliance. Sometimes lending unconditional support works wonders for sending the message across to the electorate.
"It is true that the SP and the BSP aren't main political parties of Bihar, but we have high regard for them and their politics. We have seen that SP-BSP alliance has decided not to field their candidates in Amethi and Raebareli," Yadav said.
Once arch-rivals, the SP and the BSP announced this month their tie-up in UP for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance.
Tejashwi Yadav's remarks come amid hectic efforts by the opposition to forge a strong alliance to take on the BJP in the general election.
Leaders from several opposition parties, including Yadav, came together Saturday, vowing at a mega rally in Kolkata to put up a united fight in the coming polls and oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi from power.
Prime Minister Modi had earlier hit out at the Mahagathbandhan for the polls, saying it was an "unholy alliance" of various political parties for "personal survival". The BJP has also slammed the SP-BSP tie-up in UP.
Yadav also hit out at those dubbing his meeting with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawati in Lucknow as a pressure tactic aimed at the Congress, saying his family always had close ties with the two leaders and the meetings were courtesy calls.
Akhilesh ji is part of our extended family and 'behen' Mayawati ji always had cordial relations with us. When she resigned from Rajya Sabha, my father publicly said RJD would always be ready to send her to Rajya Sabha if she agrees, Tejashwi Yadav said.
Even last year during RS elections in Bihar, I called her to request her again to enter Rajya Sabha with RJD backing. So my courtesy calls to them shouldn't be construed as a pressure tactic, he said.
As far as Bihar is concerned, irrespective of the number of MLAs in the assembly or being part of the government or opposition, everyone knows the RJD is the biggest party, he said. It is the RJD's fear that has kept the BJP and Janata Dal (United) together, he claimed.
On BJP terming the SP-BSP alliance an opportunistic alliance, Yadav hit out at the saffron party saying when it has tie-ups, it calls it "smart politicking", and asked what should its coalition of about 40 parties be called.
"Criticism by the BJP shows their uneasiness due to this alliance," he said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bhojshala complex registered as 'mosque' in old revenue records: Muslim side to MP HC
Indore (PTI): The disputed Bhojshala Temple-Kamal Maula Mosque complex has historically been registered as a 'mosque' in revenue records and available sources don't clearly mention any Saraswati temple established by then-king Raja Bhoj, the Muslim side has told the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
The Hindu community considers Bhojshala a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, while the Muslim side calls the 11th-century monument Kamal Maula Mosque. The disputed complex located in Dhar district is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
During the hearing before the HC's Indore bench of Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi on Wednesday, Qazi Moinuddin questioned two PILs filed as intervenors in the Bhojshala case by an organisation named Hindu Front for Justice, one Kuldeep Tiwari and another individual.
Moinuddin claims to be a descendant of Sufi saint Maulana Kamaluddin Chishti and the 'Sajjadanashin' (spiritual head, guru, or successor of a Sufi shrine, khanqah, or religious site).
The PILs state that Bhojshala is actually a Saraswati temple and only Hindus should be granted the right to worship at the disputed complex.
Moinuddin's lawyer, Noor Ahmed Sheikh, claimed in the court that his client's ancestors, who are descendants of Maulana Kamaluddin Chishti, have historically held titles to the complex, and the site was also recorded as a "mosque" in government revenue records.
He contended that those associated with the management of the Kamal Maula Mosque, located within the complex, have been in "continuous and peaceful occupation" of the site for a long time.
Citing Muslim law, Sheikh argued that in the case of religious property, particularly a mosque or its related properties, officials such as the Sajjadanashin and Mutawalli (person entrusted with management, maintenance, and administration of a Waqf), and their descendants, not only have the right to intervene, but also have the right to manage and use such a structure.
Citing provisions of the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act 1904, the Muslim side's lawyer said the term "in-charge of the property" is used in this law, which makes it clear that the person or party who has been in charge of a property for a long time has rights over it.
During the hearing, Touseef Warsi, the lawyer representing the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society of Dhar, claimed that Hindu parties in both PILs had made "misleading representations" regarding historical facts before the high court.
He further claimed that available historical sources do not clearly mention the existence of a Saraswati temple established by Raja Bhoj, the legendary king of the Parmar dynasty who ruled Dhar from 1010 to 1055.
The ASI, a central government agency, has adopted three different positions in the lawsuits filed regarding the Bhojshala dispute, changing its answers from time to time, and this situation raises serious questions about judicial scrutiny of the complex, Warsi submitted.
He raised objections regarding the ASI's process of scientific survey of the Bhojshala complex, carried out on the HC order in 2024, and the method of videography and requested the court to examine these objections.
The hearing in the Bhojshala case will continue on Thursday.
The HC has been regularly hearing four petitions and one writ appeal since April 6, contesting the religious nature of the monument.
