Vowing not to allow the country to be broken up on the basis of religion, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today said the NDA Government was committed to development and rooting out poverty and unemployment. ‘‘We will never allow the country to be broken up on the basis of religion. India, despite its religious, caste and linguistic diversities, will remain one,’’ he told an election rally here.In an oblique reference to separatist forces and Naxalites, the PM said there were some elements that wanted to capture power through violence. ‘‘We will never allow them to succeed.‘‘We are committed to ushering in a new era of all-round development. We ask you to give us the mandate to run the country for another five years to get rid of unemployment and poverty,’’ Vajpayee added.Launching a stinging attack on the Congress for dubbing BJP as communal, he said: ‘‘We don’t discriminate between Hindus and Muslims and follow the Constitution which does not permit any discrimination on the basis of religion.’’Addressing election rallies here and at Buxar, Vajpayee said six years of the NDA rule had exploded the myth that only the Congress government could complete a full term in office. There was a stampede during the rally at Patna when enthusiastic crowds waving BJP flags broke the barricades to hear the PM from close quarters, forcing police to resort to a mild lathicharge.Stating that the Congress’ new-found inclination to form an anti-NDA coalition reflected its fear of defeat in the polls, Vajpayee said the party, which was once averse to coalition politics, was now looking for friends.‘‘Our endeavour to bring development has succeeded and so has our diplomacy. Instead of the artillery of India and Pakistan firing shells at each other, we are playing cricket,” Vajpayee said.
