Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said today that the party will contest the local panchayat elections on its own.

“This is just a local body election. The party's state unit is well-equipped to meet the situation,” Naidu said. But the national picture is still unclear and seems likely to remain so till elections to the parliament take place.

Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, meanwhile, conducted a meeting of the Progressive Secular Democratic Front (PSDF) -- the 17-party coalition -- today.

She alleged that the state electoral rolls are faulty and need a thorough scrutiny. The party, she said, will take this issue up in the near future.

Talking to the media before a party meeting at Mahajati Sadan, Naidu held the Centre responsible for the stand-off between political parties on the proposed Indo-US nuclear deal.

“The Congress has itself to blame. The way they dealt with such an important national issue -- if at all there is going to be any isolation (of the country internationally) it is because of the Congress and the UPA's mishandling of it,” he said.

Any mature administrator would have done enough homework and discussed it with friends, the Opposition, create a broad national consensus and then move forward.

The government has taken up the agreement without consulting other parties and is now trying to reach a consensus.