Sunday, October 2 2005 17:09 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress may be at loggerheads on most issues, but BJP President L K Advani today (Oct 2, 2005) showered praise on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for having the 'courage' to apologise publicly for the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

At a press conference in which he demanded a probe into allegations that KGB bribed Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI) and its leaders, Advani said, "BJP does not expect much from the parties which are themselves in the dock. But the Prime Minister does not have anything to do with that period."

Recalling the discussion on anti-Sikh riots in Parliament after the Nanavati Commission report indicted several Congress leaders, Advani said most leaders were of the opinion that these were an organised carnage.

"(But) only the Prime Minister could show the courage to stand up in Parliament and offer public apology for the riots," he said.

The BJP President said even on the issue of he Mitrokhin Archives, only Singh could act on his demands.

Asked whether the BJP would follow the example of the Prime Minister and apologise for Gujarat riots, Advani sidestepped the issue saying, "There is no finding against the Gujarat Government."

"Everyone talks of Gujarat, but they should remember that while the police did not make any attempt to stop the anti-Sikh riots, in Gujarat more than 200 people died in police firing," he said.