Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) president Nitin Gadkari survived in his post for one more day but with more leaders speaking out against him his future is more uncertain than ever.
During a day that saw a series of meetings of the party top brass, Gadkari apologized for his comments comparing Swami Vivekanand with Dawood Ibrahim, RSS criticized the remarks, veteran ideologue S Gurumurthy arrived on the scene to patch up things, but no clear picture emerged on the vexed question: will he be dropped now or plainly denied a second term?
Gadkari’s apology coupled with Gurumurthy’s work behind the scenes reduced some tension in time for the BJP core committee meeting.
Gurumurthy also met Ram Jethmalani, whose son has quit the party national executive in protest against Gadkari. Party circles speculated that Gurumurthy would come out with a clarification on Gadkari’s Purti group and its audits, responding to activist Arvind Kejriwal’s charges of corruption against it.
BJP policymakers feel that Gadkari, facing a media trial, will not be given a second term and by mid December there shall be another meeting of the party seniors to pick his successor – whose name would be formally proposed by Gadkari.
Apology
Facing demands from within his party to quit, charges of corruption and a controversy after his apparent comparison between spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda and terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, Gadkari on Tuesday chose to clear the air at least about his remarks.
A statement released by his office in New Delhi said that he regretted his remarks, but also that he was quoted out of context "to create confusion".
"My personal reverence for Swami Vivekananda is second to none. I am deeply pained to note that my words have been taken out of context to create confusion," the statement said. "I had absolutely no intention to project Swami Vivekananda in bad light. If my words about Swami Vivekananda have hurt the public sentiments in any manner, I express my sincere regrets," the statement read.
At a function in Bhopal on Sunday, Gadkari said that Swami Vivekananda and Dawood Ibrahim had comparable IQs, but one used it for nation building and the other for crime.
Jethmalani raises stakes
This remark was also used by Ram Jethmalani, BJP MP in Rajya Sabha and a senior party functionary, to criticise Gadkari, who he has demanded quit the party president's post. Ram Jethmalani also claimed that three other senior leaders, including Jaswant Singh and Yashwant Sinha, also wanted the same.
"I am in touch with Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha and Shatrughan Sinha (all Lok Sabha members). We seem to be on the same wave length. I don't presume to predict how they will… We are clearly of the opinion that resignation of the party president is imminently called for," he told reporters.
As reported by PTI, Jethmalani feels it would be in the interest of the party to disassociate itself with Gadkari. His presence would have an adverse effect on the party in the 2014 Lok sabha elections.
Factions in the party
Differences in the BJP over Gadkari are out in the open with one camp holding him guilty and demanding his resignation and the other trying to defend him. Senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday expressed her support for the under-fire party president, saying that she had always supported him and will continue to do so.
"The media reports that I am not supporting Shri Nitin Gadkari are absolutely false. I have always supported him and I reiterate my support," Swaraj tweeted after he reportedly met her.
Meanwhile, other senior BJP leaders including LK Advani, whom Gadkari was expected to meet soon, Arun Jaitley were silent over the issue.
All eyes are on the RSS, which has rebuked Gadkari for the Vivekanand comment, but is said to be against his removal as it would be an admission of guilt.
