As the entire state waits with fingers crossed over the bandh called by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad tomorrow to protest yesterday’s temple terror, the message to caretaker Chief Minister Narendra Modi from both Prime Minister A B Vajpayee and Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani couldn’t be clearer: we don’t want a repeat of Godhra. Flying in straight from Male, Vajpayee told reporters at the Akshardham temple complex: ‘‘Yeh hinsa-pratihinsa ka khel bandh hona chahiye.’’ (This game of violence and counter-violence has to stop). Speaking in the hallway where most victims had been killed, Vajpayee said: ‘‘The problem of terrorism can’t be tackled by any single party. It’s a question of national security and integrity, and the vexed problem should be dealt with unitedly by all concerned.’’ The prime minister said it was unfortunate that a ‘‘well-planned conspiracy’’ had caused so much bloodshed and had taken place at a shrine. Calling on intelligence agencies to find out who was behind the brutal act, he said: ‘‘Terrorists and those encouraging terrorism should be isolated. Those talking of bringing about a change through acts of terrorism cannot be called revolutionaries. This was proved by the recent developments in Afghanistan,’’ he said. He said the people of Jammu & Kashmir had participated in the first two phases of the Assembly elections with great enthusiasm, despite Pakistan trying to make them stay away and despite militants killing candidates. In a similar way, he said, the people of Gujarat should give a fitting reply to terrorism by maintaining peace and displaying a sense of brotherhood among them. ‘‘We all should take it up as a challenge to fight against terrorism,’’ Vajpayee said. Yesterday, soon after terrorists struck, Advani is said to have told Modi that riots at this stage would only backfire. And that if he managed to avert communal violence in the state, that would blunt the ongoing criticism of the state government. Reined in by Advani, Modi was unusually sober today, the next leg of his Gaurav Yatra ‘‘indefinitely postponed.’’ But much will depend on what happens—or what doesn’t happen—tomorrow. For few here have forgotten that the day the VHP called a bandh against the Godhra massacre was the day the city and the state were gripped by communal frenzy. Officially, the BJP has distanced itself from the bandh tomorrow, saying that had nothing to do with it. However, it also made it clear that it was up to the individual members of the party to decide whether they wanted to take part in the bandh. In recent weeks, Advani has been vocal in his criticism of Modi’s handling of the Gujarat riots. He criticised Gujarat from London, he gave an interview to the foreign media that Gujarat was a ‘‘black spot that had botched our track record,’’ and later his statement that he could not endorse what Modi had said (about the Muslims) because a CM could not speak like that. The internal feedback received by the BJP last week was that Modi was over-reaching himself. And people, particularly the intelligentsia, the business community and the bureaucracy, were increasingly disenchanted with his style and favoured stability in the state so that their businesses did not suffer. There is also a fear that continued turmoil in the state could push elections further, which has become pivotal for the party’s fortunes. Meanwhile, VHP leaders held closed-door meetings throughout the day in various parts of the city towards ensuring the ‘‘success’’ of the bandh. VHP’s International General Secretary Pravin Togadia said that the group would try to keep the bandh peaceful. He, however, refused to give an assurance that there would be no repeat of the post-Godhra attacks. ‘‘I am not an astrologer so I cannot predict what is going to happen the next day, but I can assure you that the bandh call would be on democratic lines,’’ he said. VHP office-bearers including state general secretary Jaideep Patel were seen issuing instructions to workers and supporters to make sure all the shops and businessess remained closed. But none of them revealed as to what was discussed in the meetings. Earlier, Advani blamed the ‘‘neighbouring country’’ for the attack on Akshardham, saying the pre-planned attack was meant to derail the democratic process in Jammu and Kashmir. Without naming Pakistan, he referred to the ‘‘enemy leader’s speech at the recent UNO meet where Gujarat was raised as the one carrying message for such a provocation. ‘It’s a continuous war against terrorism, there could be more attacks,’’ he said while speaking to reporters at Akshardham temple. He compared the successful operation at Gandhinagar to the 1971 victory. ‘‘Attempts were made to justify the Godhra carnage. What explanation will they give for the temple attack,’’ he asked and praised the NSG for the successful operation. ‘‘The temple is not damaged. The attackers probably wanted to hold devotees in the sacred place as hostage and bargain for something,’’ Advani said.
