By IANS,
Shimla : While most Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, who are here for a three-day meeting to introspect on what ails the party, Thursday maintained a studied silence on the dramatic sacking of senior leader Jaswant Singh, there is unease in sections of the party over the decision.
Several partymen believe Singh should not have been expelled, recalling the way the BJP internalised its seniormost leader L.K. Advani’s praise of Mohammed Ali Jinnah in 2005 during a visit to Pakistan.
Jaswant Singh also hailed the founder of Pakistan and for which he has been scalped, wondered a senior Himachal Pradesh BJP leader, who unsuccessfully contested the 2004 parliamentary elections. Singh was telephonically informed Wednesday that he had been sacked and told not to attend the introspection meeting.
“A debate is on within the party regarding the double standards on the Jinnah issue. When party leader L.K. Advani spoke in praise of Jinnah, it maintained stoic silence,” he said.
“Now Jaswant Singh said the same thing in his book, it created a flutter. This proves the double standards of the party,” he remarked.
Few other leaders were willing to speak even on conditions of anonymity, but those who did seemed to be bitter.
“If a senior leader can be sacked from the party without being given an opportunity to explain his viewpoint, ordinary party workers stand nowhere,” said another leader, echoing similar views of others.
Still others were more diplomatic. Himachal Pradesh BJP chief Khimi Ram said: “We are busy in holding the party’s national meet. We are not supposed to speak on the ‘chintan baithak’ (introspection session).”
Vijay Goel, national general secretary, said the media would be briefed about the ‘chintan baithak’ after the conclusion of the brainstorming session (Aug 21).
Political observer S.D. Sharma remarked: “Shimla is considered jinxed for crucial meetings and conclaves. Most of the decisions taken here in the past on crucial issues, from the Simla Agreement to the roundtable conference before independence became controversial or unfruitful. It seems the ‘chintan baithak’ too started on an inauspicious note (expulsion of Jaswant Singh).”
The three-day ‘chintan baithak’ began Wednesday with the sacking of Jaswant Singh, just two days after the release of his controversial book “Jinnah – India – Partition – Independence”.