We won8217;t avoid a coalition, asserts PM

We openly tell the people that we shall run the government in coalition with our alliance partners,8217; he told the largely-attended meetings.

He said the NDA partners had come together on the basis of a common programme to give a good, efficient and clean government at the Centre.

We have proved that a coalition government can be run efficiently and all our partners have stood solidly united except for Jayalalitha who deserted us join hands with Congress,8217; he said.

Charging the Congress with doublespeak, Vajpayee said on the one hand it was against coalitions and on the other had itself forged coalitions for the current Lok Sabha election.

He said Congress was preaching moral issues against electoral alliance but itself joined hands with Laloo Prasad Yadav8217;s RJD which was having the most corrupt rule in Bihar8217;.

Congress is accusing the BJP of forming alliance with 24 parties but had itself gone for alliance with as many as 22 parties, he claimed.

Asserting that his government was functioning efficiently, Vajpayee accused the Congress of pulling it down for no valid reasons and said he could have ensured its survival by horse-trading but he believed in taking the issue to the people8217;s court.

Aisa nahin tha ki mandi mein maal nahin tha 8230; Maal bikau bhi tha, par hum saudebazi ke liye taiyar nahi the It is not as if we could not have bought votes. But we decided not to do so as we wanted to take the issue to the people8217;s court,8217; he said in Kota.

There was no rational cause for the government8217;s fall, but the Congress panicked by the achievements and success of our government engineered its fall by conspiring with other parties,8217; the Prime Minister said.

Defending India8217;s policy towards Pakistan he said, We have shown to the world that we stood for peace in the region but at the same time we can give a befitting reply to any aggressor. We are committed to the security of the nation.8217;

We also want security for every individual citizen of the country. We don8217;t discriminate on the basis of religion and believe that everyone has same rights and same opportunity for progress,8217; he said.

He assured the women voters that if NDA returned to power it would ensure passage of a legislation providing for reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state legislatures.

Charging the Congress with being power hungry8217;, Vajpayee said, We patiently sat in Opposition for 40 years because for us politics is not for enjoying power but for building a strong and prosperous nation.8217;

Vajpayee said he had no doubt that Congress would again taste defeat in the election because people want to punish it for engineering fall of a well running government8217;.