Unrest in BJP over RS polls

Former finance minister Yashwant Sinha, Balbir Punj and several other BJP MPs on Tuesday expressed dissatisfaction over the manner the party did not claim and contest all Rajya Sabha elections. At the BJP parliamentary party meeting on Tuesday, they also raised the issue of the party’s failure to get its deputy leader in the Upper House SS Ahluwalia re-elected from Bihar.

Ahluwalia has been a vocal member of the BJP in the Rajya Sabha for more than a decade and he is the most conspicuous party spokesman.

Ahluwalia said senior party leader and NDA chairman LK Advani presided over the meeting and leaders of opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, were present. Responding to the members’ views, Advani promised to convey the matter to party president Nitin Gadkari.

Interacting with journalists, Swaraj admitted that there was a sense of disappointment about Ahluwalia leaving the House and she expressed the hope that he would be back soon. In response to a DNA query whether it did not reflect badly on the party that it could not get its own deputy leader in the House re-elected, she said that it was this sentiment that was expressed in the parliamentary party meeting. She also said one of the members argued the case for bringing back BS Yeddyurappa back as chief minister in Karnataka.