BJP president M. Venkaiah Naidu today called for prompt action by the A.B. Vajpayee Government to push through legislations banning religious conversions and cow-slaughter.Speaking at the weekly meeting of the BJP parliamentary party, Naidu asked the Government to move Bills on both counts during the current budget session of Parliament. The session is scheduled to end on May 9.According to BJP parliamentary party spokesman Vijay Kumar Malhotra, Naidu said: ‘‘Some states have got laws banning cow-slaughter and conversions. But, it is essential to have laws enacted by Parliament so that they are applicable all over the country.’’ Naidu’s strategy is to force the Congress, which rules the four election-bound states of Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, to take a stand on the two sensitive issues. The party feels that by taking a categorical stand on a country-wide ban on cow-slaughter and religious conversions, the Congress would stand to alienate either the minorities or the Hindus.The meeting was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani in the absence of Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee, who was preoccupied due to the visit of Singapore Prime Minister.
