Expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh rejoined the party nine months after he was summarily thrown out for writing a controversial book on Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
Senior politician Jaswant Singh could gain re-entry into Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) only because of emotional pressure by party stalwart LK Advani, sources said. Singh was expelled from the party last August for praising Mohammad Ali Jinnah in his book Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence.
Ever since his ouster, Singh has had only one supporter in the BJP, in the form of Advani. Other party leaders, notably Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, had used strong words against Singh because he had dared to criticise Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in his book. Patel is an icon in Gujarat.
A BJP official said Advani wants to make peace with all his former collegaues at the twilight of his political career. “Jaswant Singh has been associated with us ever since he retired from the army. By re-inducting him in the party Advaniji wants to show that he is trying to unite all factions of the party for a bigger cause,” he said.
To justify his argument the official said, “Advaniji has developed a soft corner for old friends. Last week, at a function in Mumbai, Advaniji said that he has special bonds with former Mumbai sheriff Nana Chudasama. One of the reasons for that is like him [Advani], Chudasama had also lived in Karachi for a few years.” Advani recently forced the party to get old friend Ram Jethmalani elected to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.
An opponent of Singh, however, has another story to tell. “After he was expelled from BJP, Jaswant Singh formed a group with five Lok Sabha members, including Digvijay Singh of JD (U). They were eyeing a political bargain from the Congress. But after Digvijay fell ill, the group fell apart and the possibility of the bargain was over. So Jaswant has no option now but to re-join the BJP,” he said.
“Though Advani has shown interest in making up with former colleagues, he has been tight-lipped over the re-induction of Sanjay Singh, a former general secretary, who was sacked after the release of a controversial CD featuring Joshi with a woman in a compromising position,” he said.
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