New Delhi: A day after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president L K Advani declared his party's commitment to build the Ram Temple at Ayodhya, Union Law Minister H R Bharadwaj cautioned him not to mix religion with politics.

"I am firmly of the opinion that no political party should be allowed to mix religion with politics. Moreover, it is always a corrupt practice under the electoral laws," he said today (Oct 28, 2004).

Warning that mixing religion with politics would prove "disastrous" for the country, he said religion was meant for self-purification and not for anybody's political end.

Questioning the former Deputy Prime Minister's assertion yesterday (Oct 27, 2004) that work on Ram Mandir would have commenced had BJP got the mandate in the last Lok Sabha elections, Bharadwaj wondered "Is Advani a priest to take up the Ram Mandir issue every now and then!"

"Advani is not a priest. We expect senior leaders like him to indulge in politics that is based on economic and social issues confronting the poor of the country," he said.

Bharadwaj said, "Advani should be suggesting methods to ameliorate the condition of the poor and downtrodden rather than attempt to divide them on the lines of religion."

Each time the BJP loses election, it comes back to the Ayodhya issue, which they had failed to fulfil during the time they were in power, the Law Minister said.

Advani, while addressing BJP national council, which approved his appointment as Party president yesterday said, "BJP's growth is reflective of the national will and desire of crores of people of this country that a magnificent temple be constructed at the Ram Janamsthan at Ayodhya in the place of the existing makeshift temple. Our desire is to ensure that the temple is built."

"If the NDA had been re-elected, the construction of the temple would have begun by now," he had said.

Reminding the BJP president that secularism was part of the basic features of our Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court, Bharadwaj said it was expected of everybody to respect and abide by the core guiding principles of governance in India.

Turning philosophical, the Law Minister said, "Secularism is like pure honey, which is not produced from the nectar of a single flower. Honey is made by the bee by collecting nectar from several kinds of flowers."

Comparing secularism to honey, he said it meant equal respect to all religions, howsoever small in number their followers were, he said.