New Delhi: The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will not depart from its stand on the Ayodhya issue and if Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has its own agenda on Ram temple, it will not become an election plank for the coalition, alliance convenor George Fernandes said today (Feb 11, 2004).

He expressed confidence that the NDA will get an absolute majority on its own in the coming elections on the basis of promises it delivered and due to the state of the Congress Party, which was in "doldrums".

In an hour-long interview, Fernandes said there was a radical change in the mood of the country after Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's path-breaking initiatives to resolve serious problems including Jammu and Kashmir and improving bilateral relations with Pakistan and China.

"I don't see any situation in which NDA will depart from its earlier programme (on Ayodhya). If the BJP has its own agenda on the issue, it will not be an election issue as far as NDA is concerned," he said.

Asked about Vajpayee and Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani's statements that NDA needed one more term to complete unfinished task including construction of Ram temple, Fernandes said there was nothing wrong about it.

"I don't see anything against that because there is a commitment and all parties have been working to try and bring it to fruition. That commitment is either through dialogue or through a court decision. The issue must be resolved and a temple should be built," he said, adding that he did not see BJP having its own agenda on the issue for the polls.