The Hindu : Other States / Rajasthan News : Dissension BJP over Cabinet expansion

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Friday, Jun 04, 2004

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Dissension BJP over Cabinet expansion

JAIPUR, JUNE 3. Barely three days after the first expansion of the six-month-old Vasundhara Raje Cabinet, dissension came out in the open in the BJP camp in Rajasthan today with party workers calling a bandh in one town and protestors shouting slogans at the State BJP headquarters.

Ms. Raje, who had taken oath of office and secrecy along with nine others on December 8 last, had inducted 17 new ministers into her Cabinet on Monday. Many senior leaders were overlooked as the Chief Minister preferred seven first time MLAs for ministerial berths.

The protests were almost spontaneous. Nearly 50 supporters of Rao Rajendra Singh, MLA from Bairath in Jaipur district, raised slogans at the State BJP office soon after the swearing-in, demanding a Cabinet berth to their leader as well.

About a dozen party office-bearers from Nawan in Nagaur district arrived along with their slogan-shouting supporters at the party office here today and offered to resign to protest the denial of ministerial berth to sitting MLA Harish Chand Kumawat.

They later left after the State BJP chief, Lalit Kishore Chaturvedi, gave them a long lecture on party discipline.

Meanwhile, a bandh was observed in Manoharthana town on a call by supporters of sitting BJP MLA Jagannath Verma. Party workers in the area are demanding a Cabinet post to Mr. Verma, who was charged with obstructing officials and damaging public property during elections in Jhalawar Lok Sabha constituency, from where Ms. Raje's son Dushyant was the party candidate.

The police said the bandh was peaceful.

UNI

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