145;Rift remark to divert attention from issues146;

Reacting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh8217;s dig at Atal Behari Vajpayee and LK Advani, the BJP asked the PM to concentrate on tackling grave issues faced by the country, instead of 8220;inventing differences between the BJP leaders when none exists8221;.

8220;Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has drifted so far from reality that he is buying his own propaganda,8221; BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley told the media today. Rulers, according to him, often suffered from this malaise. Jaitley enumerated the burning problems before the country 8212; mass unrest visible on the road, spurt in farmers8217; suicides and terrorism 8212; which begged his attention. Besides, he had to contend with internal differences in the UPA and the crisis arising from a threat to the division of powers envisaged under a parliamentary democracy.

Jaitley felt the Prime Minister, by overlooking vital matters, was trying to divert focus to non-issues. Referring to the Vajpayee-Advani relationship, he said their 50-year record of working together would have very few parallels in history. When asked if the BJP would readmit Uma Bharati in to the party in the aftermath of the Madhya Pradesh by-elections, Jaitley said, 8220;She runs a separate party8230;Where is the question of her return?8221;