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BJP defends Gujarat chief minister

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi

The Bharatiya Janata Party central leadership is defending Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel's handling of relief and rehabilitation measures for the state's earthquake victims although pressure is mounting for his removal, following charges of negligence.

"In such natural disasters, there is a tendency, especially by Opposition parties, to make a mountain out of a molehill. We are not saying that our handling of relief and rehabilitation measures is picture perfect. But all kind of things are being alleged against Patel, of which we don't approve," pointed out senior most BJP vice-president K Jana Krishnamurthy.

He stressed that there was no justification for the "tirade" against the chief minister, who was doing his best to ensure that the quake-hit people received maximum succour.

"Patel has been instrumental in setting up an authority for relief and rehabilitation measures. He has also instructed Gujarat Bhavan officials in Delhi to ensure optimum mobilisation of donations in cash and kind for the Gujarat earthquake-affected people," Krishnamurthy emphasized.

He did not agree that Patel had vested interests in ensuring relief and rehabilitation measures in his 'areas of influence' in Gujarat, while worst-affected areas like Kutch district continue to suffer.

"There are inevitable problems in a natural disaster of this magnitude. But to single out an individual for the sake of apportioning blame just does not gel," he pointed out.

However, there is persistent talk at the BJP's Ashoka Road headquarters that Patel is facing considerable flak for his "mishandling" of relief and rehabilitation initiatives for the earthquake-affected people and that the central party high command had taken cognizance of the matter

Partyworker Vinod Rajdhyaksha claimed that senior party general secretary Narendra Modi, after touring Gujarat, had expressed unhappiness with the chief minister's handling of relief measures.

This was one reason why the Vajpayee government was pulling out all stops to provide succour to the affected people, Rajdhyaksha said.

"Narendra Modiji se pocchiye, Gujarat mukhyamantri ne kis tarah se bhookamp rahat ka damadol kiya hai (Ask Narendra Modi how the Gujarat chief minister has botched up relief measures),'' the BJP worker asserted.

Modi was not available for comment.

Opposition parties, notably the Congress, maintained that like its central counterpart, the Gujarat Government had failed in ensuring that the quake-affected get timely relief and rehabilitation measures.

"Such confusion and inefficiency is only to be expected from this state government, where the chief minister is more concerned with looking after his constituency, rather than deserving people. The worst-affected people of Kutch district is a case in point," senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad pointed out.

Congress chief Sonia Gandhi rushed to Gujarat's affected areas soon after the earthquake and blamed the state government for the people's inability to get adequate relief and rehabilitation succour.

But her party leaders seemed to have kept a low profile on the issue thereafter, when they discovered that her sojourn received bare minimum publicity in the media.

Union Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha told executives of the Life Insurance Corporation and General Insurance Corporation to ensure prompt settlement of claims of earthquake-affected clients in the state, from special settlement cells operating from tents, within 48 hours.

The minister emphasised that there would not be any resource constraint when it came to insurance companies meeting claims of the affected.

The Complete Coverage | List of earthquake sites

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