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ShareNew Delhi: BJP President Rajnath Singh had informed the party's top brass last week of his decision to quit but they and the RSS prevailed upon him to continue till December. He has been asked to stay on until his successor is formally chosen and elections in Jharkhand would be over, according to a senior party leader.
He said Singh had made up his mind to quit his post about ten days back, but the party leadership prevailed upon him to continue till December.
"Rajnath Singh was told that one-and-a-half months of his tenure are still left. It was suggested that he could step down a few days before his term ends but doing so now would be too premature. Moreover, his resignation may send a wrong message to the party cadre and the electorate in Jharkhand," the senior leader said.
RSS leaders were also understood to have taken a similar stand and told Singh that though the election of Mahrashtra BJP chief Nitin Gadkari to the top post was now a certainty, he should continue for the time being.
Singh was nominated as BJP President on November 26, 2006. This decision was endorsed by the party National Executive held in Lucknow on December 24, 2006. The leader said Singh may resign around a week before the latter date.Till then Singh will carry on his responsibilities in a full-fledged manner, the leader said.
Singh will move the adjournment motion on behalf of BJP in the Lok Sabha tomorrow against the Sugarcane (Control) Amendment Order, 2009. Singh is scheduled to spend around a week in Jharkhand campaigning for his party. BJP is hopeful of a rich electoral harvest in the state which has been under President's Rule for the last few months.
However, the organisation election process in BJP is still a long way from completion. Since several states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Haryana, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka have not held state unit polls and election of the party president is unlikely to be done before January end.
Meanwhile, a party leader said Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, whose name was earlier doing the rounds for the post of party president, had himself told the BJP and the RSS that he was not keen on accepting the post at this juncture.
"Modi will complete his term as chief minister in 2012 when the BJP presidential elections would also be held. He may become party president which will put him in a strong position in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls," the leader said.
