Emboldened by the support of other NDA alliance partners on the Goa issue, the BJP on Friday decided to train its guns on Rashtrapati Bhavan by seeking to put the onus on President Pratibha Patil for undoing the actions of Goa Assembly Speaker Pratapsinh Rane.
Urging Patil to intervene and correct the actions of the Goa Speaker, who had disqualified three breakaway MLAs from the Congress-led ruling alliance, the BJP contended that Pratibha Patil, being the constitutional head of the country, had an obligation to protect democracy. ?Why do we need to look towards judiciary on issues of constitutional impropriety every time? The President is duty bound by oath of office to protect the Constitution,? senior BJP leader LK Advani said, who termed the Goa Speaker?s decision as ?unconstitutional?.
Advani was addressing a rally here to protest the Goa fiasco. He said that because of the consistent failure on the part of constitutional authorities at the highest level each time such an issue comes up, the aggrieved party looks up to courts for relief. ?It?s unfortunate,? he lamented.
Further referring to the petition challenging the decision to restrain three MLAs from voting, he said, ?All eyes are on the Supreme Court. But protectors of Constitution such as the Prime Minister and the ruling party should ensure that faith in democracy is not shaken.?
BJP president Rajnath Singh said the entire NDA is together on the issue and ?We will continue our protest until democracy is restored in the state and BJP-led Goa Democratic Alliance (GDA) is allowed to form the government.?
Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi, while addressed the gathering said that Sena chief Bal Thackeray had asked him to support the cause. ?We are against the Congress policy in Goa,? he added. JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav, who was also present at the rally, claimed that the issue would be raised in Parliament. ?We will not allow anybody to butcher democracy and fight tooth and nail for its protection,? he added.