KOLKATA: Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu today denied any conflict of views or interest between L K Advani and Narendra Modi and said that everybody has a right to question the performance of the Prime Minister as he was accountable to the nation.
Supporting Modi, Naidu said, “There is no conflict of views at all because Advaniji has not taken any name. I have gone through his statement very carefully. There is no conflict of interest.
“It is very clear that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is answerable to the nation. He has failed, therefore we have every right to question him. But no personal criticism should be made,” Naidu told reporters here.
“But yes, there can be criticism of his performance. Prime Minister is accountable to the nation,” he said.
Naidu’s comment came in the backdrop of Narendra Modi’s attack on Manmohan Singh on Independence Day yesterday which drew an indirect rebuke from Advani, who also got the backing of key NDA ally Shiv Sena.
Advani, who has voiced reservations about the elevation of the Gujarat Chief Minister as BJP’s national election campaign chief, yesterday said that on a day like Independence Day, leaders should not be critical of others.
Asked whether the BJP-led NDA would be able to garner enough allies with Modi as the party’s poll campaign committee chief, Naidu said, “Alliances and understandings are not made on the basis of personalities, but are made on the basis of agenda,”
Naidu also criticized the Prime Minister’s Independence Day speech, saying that it had failed to restore the nation’s confidence.
“Yesterday Prime Minister’s speech was totally lackluster, hopeless. It does not restore any confidence among anybody,” he said.
Asked why the BJP was delaying the announcement of its Prime Ministerial candidate, Naidu said, “The ruling party itself has not announced its Prime Ministerial candidate, then why should the opposition party be in a hurry?” -PTI
