The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday expelled Jaswant Singh, its veteran leader and an MP. A meeting of the Parliamentary Board in Shimla unanimously decided to remove the former Union Minister from the primary membership. The decision came even as a three-day ‘Chinthan Baithak’ or brainstorming session of the party started at the hill station.
The decision is being read in the party as a stern message of zero tolerance to ideological deviation and indiscipline. These were among several messages clearly conveyed only on Tuesday to the BJP by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat in a television interview.
It was stated that initially the party leadership was of the view that Mr. Jaswant Singh should be merely stripped of his membership of the Parliamentary Board. But tempers ran high among senior leaders. They viewed his praise of Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah, and his adverse comments on India’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, as ideological heresy. They called for the sternest action.
L.K. Advani, also a member of the Parliamentary Board, was himself held guilty of ideological deviation in 2005 when he praised Jinnah during a visit to Pakistan and was forced to exit as party president. On Wednesday, however, he concurred with the decision to expel Mr. Jaswant Singh, informed party sources indicated.
BJP president Rajnath Singh conveyed the decision to mediapersons outside the Peterhoff state guest house and hotel, the venue of the brainstorming conclave.
Mr. Rajnath Singh noted that he had issued a statement in Delhi on Tuesday disassociating the party from the contents of Mr. Jaswant Singh’s new book Jinnah: India-Partition Independence that was released on Monday. The Board, he said, “decided to end his primary membership. So he has been expelled. From now onwards he will not be a member of any body of the party or be an office-bearer.” Mr. Rajnath Singh said he had conveyed the decision to Mr. Jaswant Singh.
Party sources said the BJP would formally inform Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar of the expulsion. He would, under the rules, now be an unattached MP representing the Darjeeling constituency. The Speaker is expected to be told that the BJP wishes to revoke his nomination as a member and chairman of the Public Accounts Committee.
Seemingly responding to Mr. Jaswant Singh, who has charged the party with jumping procedures as he was not issued a show cause notice, BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said here that the Parliamentary Board had the authority to take “immediate decisions on urgent matters” without issuing show cause notices. “This is the decision of the Board, which means that the party will not compromise with ideology and discipline is paramount.”
There has been a series of expulsions of BJP leaders over the years, including of Kalyan Singh, Uma Bharti, Babulal Marandi and Shankersinh Waghela.
Keywords: Jaswant Singh, Rajnath Singh, expulsion, BJP
Comments:
"These were among several messages clearly conveyed only on Tuesday to the BJP by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat in a television interview."
So the BJP is accountable and answerable to a non-democratic organisation, yet it claims to be part of a democratic process.
Another exemplification of a typical infringement of fundamental rights of a citizen. The constitution grants right to freedom of expression of thought and speech. This act reminds me of Galileo Galilei who was vehemently condemned for his academic work that challenged catholic church's view of geocentric nature of universe and was forced to recant, and spend the rest of his life under house arrest. Are we going back to Middle Age ?
Mr Jaswant Singh made a bold courageous statement. I salute him.
Years ago when he was the foreign minister, he made another bold statement in American Radio show PBS. Where he exposed the " most profound abnegation in history "..when PM Nehru told the western powers that India will not accept the offer of a membership in the UN security council, unless China was also invited..."
China ended up being a permanent member of the security council while the offer to India was withdrawn. China winner and India big loser.
Thanks to Mr Nehru's naive genorisity and thanks again to Mr Jaswant Singh for that straight talk about history.
Hi,
In my opinion , with this stern act party has given a blow to itself though it's seems to be latent .
Firstly ,On the one hand party is screaming about his ideology , then why the same action was taken on the minister who had given the igniting comments in 2005.
Secondly , party has lost a veteran leader
It was long due. He was the one escorting those terrorists back in the hijack edisode. And what is it with BJP? Why are they so fond of Jinnah? He had demanded a separate muslim state and to term him as a secularist is like calling Osama Bin Laden = Mahatma Gandhi. In Jaswant's attempt to malign Congress Party, they have forgotten what route to take, and then of course this is how you pay the price. A lot needs to be seen ahead.
BJP is at the cross-roads. There are others in the line - Yaswant Sinha, Arun Shourie, not to speak of dissenting voices heard earlier from the likes of Uma Bharati, Kalyan Singh.... and the list will grow. With Vajpayeeji sinking into oblivion and the party being led by ideological fundamentalists and a few cronies, it seems there is no future for the party. One must realise that a political party cannot survive and grow in India unless it carries with it all sections of the people - religions, castes and creeds. Love, peace and harmony..... strive for them and naturally you and your party will be Big, tall, liked and ever-growing. Best of Luck! Time to think ... that's what "Chinthan Baitak" should be all about.
so much for free speech!
BJP will be back where it was in the 80s. I don't see anybody in the BJP who has the vision to take our country from where it is now to next higher level, neither do they have any concrete plans. Chintan Baitak should be all that. Come up with some bold, creative ideas to capture the imagination of the people and market those ideas aggressively instead of doing chinta about the past and doing nothing for the future. They need to accept the fact that India is multi-cultural, multi-lingual, secular oriented free country where nobody is second class citizen and they all have equal right.
If only the BJP had proclaimed with dignity, 'We beg to differ but lets not stoke flames of controversy with this', they would have stood apart as a grown-up party.But..they have added one more scoop of disgrace into their cup.[which by the way is already overflowing with disgrace]
Expulsion of Jaswant Singh was not very shocking but the way it was
done and arguments given by BJP leaders is just below expectations.
This is not a way to treat senior leader of party and shows the
downfall of BJP and democratic politics.