Thursday, May 19 2005 18:02 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Describing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief L K Advani's diatribe against Communists as "hypocritical", Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) said that the former Deputy Prime Minister was "rattled" following the demand by Left parties to probe the Centaur Hotel deal which allegedly benefited persons connected with BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Advani's diatribe against Communists in his address to the Confederation Of India Industry (CII) is on expected lines. What has rattled him is the demand of the Left to investigate the Centaur Hotel deal because such an investigation will bring out the racketeering in the sale of public assets to benefit persons connected to the RSS and BJP," a CPM politburo release said.

"The party was of the view that a man who himself was charge sheeted in the Ayodhya case and who manipulated the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as Home Minister to get himself acquitted was now advising the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government on good governance," the release said.

It was also amusing that a person who has led a perpetual boycott of Parliament and who has adopted the most negative and confrontationist approach against the UPA Government should now "adopt the hypocritical stance" of advising the Government of how to fulfil its duties.

As Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, it said, Advani "patronised, defended and tried to cover up the worst communal pogrom in Gujarat in the history of India. State complicity has been confirmed by his colleague S S Bhandari then Governor of Gujarat."

Advani's ire is directed against Communists because it is Communists who have been relentless in their pursuit of justice against those responsible," the party release said.