On the day when BJP national president Amit Shah and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat were touring Rajasthan to better the chances of Vasundhara Raje's government's win in the upcoming assembly polls, sitting legislator Manvendra Singh dropped out of the party, he and his father, Jaswant Singh had represented for decades.
On the day when BJP national president Amit Shah and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat were touring Rajasthan to better the chances of Vasundhara Raje's government's win in the upcoming assembly polls, sitting legislator Manvendra Singh dropped out of the party, he and his father, Jaswant Singh had represented for decades.
Manvendra made his decision public at their native place, Jasol, after taking out a massive rally in Barmer against the government and daring the party to take action against him.
The Sheo MLA, who took out the rally to avenge what he termed as the humiliation of his father and former union minister Jaswant Singh and the Rajput community, triggered speculations of his joining Congress when he said standing by and for the Lotus (BJP's election symbol) was a mistake.
"Kamal ka phool, humari bhool," he told a massive gathering at Pachpadra, Barmer, on Saturday. Manvendra's decision is a big jolt to the party that has found itself on the wrong side of the Rajput community throughout the tenure of Raje's government.
State BJP president, Madan Lal Saini said, "I have not received any information about his resignation yet. Such reports are coming through the media. Manvendra is our party worker. We will talk to him and persuade him to remain with the party."
In his no-holds-barred address to the locals, Manvendra lambasted the state BJP and its government for working against the interests of the Rajput community and ignoring the Marwar belt. He didn't mince words and called out the party's national leadership for failing to resolve his grievances.
To a packed audience, Manvendra posed a question during his speech. He asked, "Should I join the Congress (Ahead of the assembly polls in December this year)?" To this question, several hands went up at the venue, asking him to take the right step and join Congress. "I have decided to quit BJP after my supporters asked me to," Manvendra told DNA. He, however, denied he has joined any party.
He claimed that the current BJP regime has hounded his father and his family. He said that the party added insult to injury by refusing to give a ticket to Jaswant Singh despite the electorate being in his favour. He also accused the party and chief minister Raje of humiliating the Rajput community by giving a ticket to Congress import Colonel Sonaram, during the 2008 general elections.
Manvendra had been planning this rally for quite some time. Because of his rebellious stand, Raje skipped Sheo during her tour of the Jodhpur division during the ongoing Rajasthan Gaurav Yatra. Raje had made it a point to counter Manvendra's stand, saying that the party is working against the interests of the Rajput community, by getting their women to organise a Shakti Sammelan in Jaisalmer. She also ensured that senior leaders of BJP, who hail from the community and ministers with the same backdrop in her Cabinet, attended the public meetings as a show of unity.
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