The Hindu : National : BJP dissidents may renew demand for Modi's removal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jun 11, 2004

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National

BJP dissidents may renew demand for Modi's removal

By Manas Dasgupta

GANDHINAGAR, JUNE 10. With the budget session of the Gujarat Assembly prorogued today, the dissident MLAs of the ruling BJP are likely to regroup again to press their demand for the removal of the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi.

The dissidents had raised a banner of revolt at the birthday party of the former Union Minister, A.K. Patel, on May 27. At least 65 BJP MLAs were reportedly present at the function. A former Deputy Minister, Purshottam Solanki, openly demanded a change in the leadership.

Several senior leaders, including the former Chief Ministers, Suresh Mehta and Keshubhai Patel, and the party's State unit president, Rajendrasinh Rana, called on the central leaders and reportedly briefed them about the resentment among the party MLAs over Mr. Modi's "style of functioning."

Alarmed by the developments, the high command asked the State leaders and the dissidents not to precipitate the crisis till at the least the Assembly session was over.

Meanwhile, Mr. Modi moved a revised Assembly schedule, cutting short its session by six days. The pending Bills were hurried through on the last day of the session today.

During this period, Mr. Modi also made efforts to blunt the dissident attack by meeting the disgruntled MLAs individually. He asked the Ministers and the officers concerned to meet all their demands.

He is also expected to expand his Cabinet and finalise the appointments in the State-owned boards and corporations to win over some of the disgruntled members.

The dissident spokesman, however, claimed that it was too late to start such "appeasement programmes" and nothing less than a change in the leadership would satisfy them.

He also disagreed that the dissidents' ranks might shrink with Mr. Modi's offers of ministership and chairmanship of the boards and corporations, many of which carry Cabinet status.

The Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Amarsinh Chaudhary, today demanded the resignation of Mr. Modi and the Law Minister, Ashok Bhatt, claiming that these two were more "tainted" than the Central Ministers whose resignations were being sought by the BJP-led Opposition.

Alleging that Mr. Modi had issued instructions to police not to act during the riots after the Godhra carnage, Mr. Chaudhary said Mr. Modi's name figured in some of the chargesheets in the riot cases.

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