Trying to downplay the controversy over senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar Joshi’s comments that it was not a Modi wave in the country, but a BJP wave, party president Rajnath Singh said on Monday that Narendra Modi and the BJP cannot be viewed separately.
“But we also cannot reject that Modi is the most popular leader and people want him as the PM,” Mr. Singh told the media at the BJP headquarters here. Coming at a time when opposition parties in U.P. are trying seek mileage on the perceived infighting within the BJP, in particular the “injustice” meted out to senior leaders of the Brahmin community, Dr. Joshi’s comments have left the BJP red-faced.
But, Mr. Rajnath blamed “wrong interpretation” of Dr. Joshi’s comments for the controversy and dismissed speculation of infighting in the party. The projection of Mr. Modi as the PM candidate was based on a unanimous decision by the BJP’s central parliamentary board, he pointed out.
Gujarat modelAlso clarifying Dr. Joshi’s comments that the Gujarat model was not applicable to other States, Mr. Singh said Mr. Modi never claimed that it should be implemented elsewhere.
He said the work done by Mr. Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister in the last 12 years could not be ignored. Mr. Singh, who was asked if Mr. Modi’s image had overshadowed that of the party, maintained that the BJP was a cadre-based party.
Defending his party’s U.P. in-charge Amit Shah, who is embroiled in a controversy over his hate speech, Mr. Singh said the former Gujarat Home Minister “has never spoken about communal polarisation. ”
Clearing the air over the party's candidate from Jhansi, Uma Bharti’s threat that the BJP would topple the Samajwadi Party government if it came to power, Mr. Singh said it was not the BJP’s policy to destabilise State governments.
