The Bharatiya Janata Party would give a 'fitting reply' if the opposition made Hindutva an issue and 'calls us communal', Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani said on Saturday.

Addressing a Gujarat BJP executive meeting in Gandhinagar, he said, "India is predominantly a Hindu country and is secular only because of Hindutva."

He talked on issues ranging from cultural nationalism to secularism and criticised the 'English media' for resorting to an 'anti-BJP' campaign following the riots in Gujarat.

"We should be thankful to the English media for their anti-BJP campaign, which ultimately resulted in a protest vote in favour of the party," he said.

He said good governance, security and development will be the three poll planks of the BJP in all the ensuing elections.

"Is being Hindu a sin?" Advani asked at one point.

"The more you talk about Godhra and its aftermath, the more it will benefit the party," he remarked adding, "the media as well as the opposition failed to understand the pulse of masses."

Advani also made a critical mention of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and alleged that he was 'under the influence of a distorted version of secularism put forward by communists'.

However, he said, "Nehru was a believer in secularism, but those who followed him later used it for vote-bank politics to woo both Hindus and Muslims."

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What do you think about the story? Read what others have to say: Number of User Comments: 4 Sub: A neutral press The english press(TV and media) have decided to go one way and have been covering events in a very partisan way. They risk losing credibility Posted by Amit Sub: Above Rtricle I also strongly feel the same way Posted by ashwini arora Sub: RE:A neutral press In fact english-media has lost all crediblity. Gujrat elections are case in the point. Despite of all the boasted predictions of a vote against Hindutva, ... Posted by Akshat Sub: Mindgames... Mr.Advani's statements appear to be an effort to get the 'English' media to avoid more coverage on Godhra and its aftermath. If Hindutva allows for ... Posted by LaxmiPrasad

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