The Hindu : National : Mehta, Rana attend rebels’ meet

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Friday, Aug 03, 2007
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Mehta, Rana attend rebels’ meet

Manas Dasgupta

GANDHINAGAR: For the first time, two senior BJP leaders in Gujarat — the former Chief Minister Suresh Mehta and the former Union Minister Kashiram Rana — attended a meeting of dissidents here on Thursday.

They, however, remained non-committal on their support to the anti-Narendra Modi campaign, and declined to make any comment except saying they were invited for the meeting. They “heard” what the dissidents had to say. “But we have not given our reaction,” Mr. Mehta told the media.

A dissident leader claimed that the veteran leader and former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel had also “given his blessings” to the dissidents, but he was not present at the meeting.

“No patch-up”

Mr. Patel declined to give any guarantee of discipline on behalf of the dissidents when the central party in charge of the Assembly elections, Arun Jaitley, called on him on Sunday. Mr. Patel reportedly told him that it was too late to make any patch-up bid with the dissidents and the party would be free to take any action against them if Mr. Modi was given a free hand in selecting candidates. About 30 BJP leaders, including a dozen present and former members of the Assembly and half-a-dozen present and former members of Parliament attended Thursday’s meeting.

Besides Mr. Rana, two MPs Vallabh Kathiriya and Somabhai Patel, who also attended the Visavadar meeting of the Samiti sharing the dais with Congress leaders in support of the anti-Modi drive, and the former Union Minister A.K. Patel, a supporter of Mr. Keshubhai Patel, were present.

While refusing to give details of what transpired at the three-hour meeting, dissident leader Gordhan Jhadafiya said the rebels had chalked out their strategy and more dissidents would come out in the open “at the right time and at right opportunity.”

Though so far only about 10 party MLAs have come out publicly against Mr. Modi, the rebels claim the support of at least 45 members in the 127-member BJP Legislature Party.

But even most of the 30-odd “die-hard dissidents” have refrained from publicly identifying themselves with the rebels.

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