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Rajnath accused of promoting nepotism

LUCKNOW: Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh’s go-ahead to his son Pankaj Singh’s appointment as president of the Uttar Pradesh unit of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha has triggered off a fresh round of infighting in the already divided party in his home State. Though the BJP chief’s son has declined to accept the post and sent in his resignation letter to the UP BJP president, Ramapati Ram Tripathi, on Wednesday, the issue continues to simmer.

Matters came to a head on Thursday when a senior party leader and former Member of Parliament, Rajnath Singh “Surya”, demanded the BJP president’s resignation for promoting nepotism and going the Sonia Gandhi way, who also elevated her son, Rahul Gandhi, as the Congress general secretary. In a strongly worded press release, Mr. “Surya” has stated that the manner in which Mr. Singh tried to promote dynastic rule for the second time showed that he is not fit to hold the prestigious post.

In the 2007 UP Assembly elections, Mr.( Pankaj ) Singh was given the party ticket from Chiraigaon but at that time too he declined to contest. Mr. Surya said by trying to hand over the political legacy to his ward, Mr. Singh had failed to understand the sentiments of the party workers. He added that the BJP workers respected their leaders but there were no takers for Congress-style nepotism in the party.

In fact, the saffron party leader accused Mr. Singh of not taking the party into confidence when he decided to contest the Haidergarh Assembly by-election in 2001 when he was the Chief Minister.

Mr. Surya is presently the convenor of the BJP cell for celebrating 150 years of the 1857 War of Independence.

Pankaj Singh’s appointment was announced late on Monday night along with the members of the State Executive of the UP BJP. The State BJP unit president, who was also handpicked by Mr. Singh to head the party in UP, hailed Pankaj Singh’s appointment. However, his joy was short lived as anonymous hand bills condemning dynastic rule were distributed in the party’s state headquarters the next day.

Sensing the changed mood in the party, Pankaj Singh put in his papers, reportedly at the behest of his father. In his resignation letter, the junior Singh thanked Mr. Tripathi for giving him this responsibility but said that due to unavoidable circumstances he was unable to take charge.

The BJP president’s detractors immediately dismissed the resignation as a gimmick.

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