India to remain secular - deputy PM

Security of Muslims during the polls is an issue

India's Deputy Prime Minister, LK Advani, has assured parliament that the India's status as a secular republic will be preserved.

The people of India will never condone communal violence

LK Advani

Long considered a right-wing leader of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Mr Advani also said the government would not allow religious violence to disrupt elections in the western state of Gujarat.

Mr Advani was addressing the lower house of parliament on the day it began its winter session amid a bitter debate with the opposition on political developments in Gujarat.

His speech coincided with the launch of the electoral process which will culminate in elections to the 182-seat state legislative assembly on 12 December.

Earlier in the year, riots between Hindus and Muslims in the BJP-ruled state left more than 1,000 dead, and many thousands more injured and homeless.

Plurality 'protected'

Mr Advani challenged allegations that the minority Muslim community suffered from insecurity following the riots in Gujarat.

Advani: "Indian constitution unanimously accepted"

"There is peace in Gujarat considering the events that occurred in February and the months that followed," he said. "Our aim will be to conduct fair polls in Gujarat."

However, it was his comments on the secular status of the Indian state that surprised many.

Mr Advani said India's constitution, which enshrined equal rights for the followers of all religious faiths, had been unanimously accepted because of deep-rooted convictions.

"In India's ethos, in India's culture, the concept of a theocratic state had never been accepted," he said. "The people of India will never condone communal violence."

Heated debate

Mr Advani was responding to accusations by Marxist leader Subodh Roy that the BJP was using religious divisions in Gujarat to garner shrinking Hindu votes.

Mr Roy's allegations were echoed by opposition Congress leader Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, who said Mr Advani himself had reinforced Hindu militancy in the early 1990s.

Mr Advani's comments followed the banning of a rally by the hard line World Hindu Council (VHP) in Gujarat, and the temporary detention of its leaders over the weekend.

He urged his own party and other organisations to see that the polls were free and fair and the safety of minority communities received proper attention.