NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party's Parliamentary Board on Monday expelled Uma Bharti from primary membership on charges of indiscipline and anti-party activities.

Late in the night, the party formally served the expulsion order. The two-paragraph letter was signed by vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.

Both president L.K. Advani and the former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, were present at the board meeting here, which lasted 25 minutes.

General secretary Arun Jaitley said the board took the decision after considering Ms. Bharti's response to the show cause notice and taking into account her utterances and behaviour over the last few days.

Mr. Jaitley refused to comment on Ms. Bharti's allegations that the party had strayed from its ideology, become corrupt, lost direction and had no principles. Her allegations were not true. The issue before the board was indiscipline, he said.

"Her allegations have nothing to do with the subject of indiscipline but were used to deflect the charges she faced." She had been using language that was "not dignified politics."

Mr. Jaitley said that of the 13 MLAs who walked out of the legislature party meeting along with Ms. Bharti in Bhopal on November 28 when Shivraj Singh Chauhan was elected leader, nine responded to the notice asking them to explain why they should not be expelled.

They expressed regret over their behaviour and assured the leadership that they would not be found wanting in matters of discipline.

The central leadership would await the recommendation of the State committee on the 13 MLAs, he said.

The clear hint is that the expression of regret by nine MLAs would be considered favourably and the other four could face stiff disciplinary action.

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