Thursday, November 10 2005 19:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Saharsa (Bihar): Stepping up his attack on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president L K Advani today (Nov 10, 2005) dubbed him as 'the weakest PM' the country had ever had and rebutted his charge against the erstwhile National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government of meting out injustice to Bihar.

''Manmohan Singh has proved to be the weakest PM the country has ever had. Even a magazine being published from London in its recent issue has an article on it. He evokes pity,'' Advani told an election rally here.

Holding the RJD, which was in power in Bihar for 15 years responsible for the ills plaguing the state, Opposition leader in Lok Sabha said, ''Being an economist, the PM should know that Lalu Prasad is responsible for the sorry state of affairs but he chose to extol him as 'Vikas Purush' (man of development). 'It is not only a matter of shame but also pity.''

Dismissing Singh's charge of the erstwhile NDA Government neglecting the state between 1998 and 2004, Advani claimed that the NDA regime had 'set an example of effective and clean governance'.

Taking a dig at the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government, Advani said, ''It is like a vehicle the steering of which is in the hands of Sonia Gandhi with Manmohan Singh pressing the accelerator and the Leftists applying the brakes.''

''Yeh ek aisi motorgadi hai jo kabhi bhi gaddhe me gir sakti hai (it is such a motor vehicle which may fall into the ditch anytime), he sarcastically remarked.

Referring to the survey report carried by a prominent weekly published from New Delhi, Advani said Bihar ranked at 20th position on the developmental front, while the BJP-ruled Gujarat was at the top.

Recalling that the JP movement launched in 1970s against corruption unleashed during the Indira Gandhi regime led to installation of the first-ever non-Congress Government at the Centre, Advani said," A similar situation is perceptible in Bihar where people have already made up their mind to dislodge the corrupt RJD.''

He assailed the UPA Government at the Center for the 'unconstitutional' dissolution of the state Assembly only to prevent the NDA from forming a Government under Nitish Kumar and asked the voters to inflict a crushing electoral defeat on the NDA's rivals.