The Hindu : National : Back to business as usual for Munde

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 24, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

Back to business as usual for Munde

Special Correspondent

Attends two separate meetings of the BJP office-bearers and Council of Ministers in Jaipur

JAIPUR: A day after the truce with his party seniors in Delhi, it was “business as usual” – or so at least it appeared -- for the BJP strongman in Maharashtra, Gopinath Munde, here on Wednesday.

As party general secretary in charge of this election-bound State, Mr. Munde attended two separate meetings of the BJP office-bearers and Council of Ministers during the day before rushing back to Delhi in the evening with his senior colleague in charge of elections here, Venkaiah Naidu.

‘No comments’

Mr. Munde, reportedly none too comfortable with sharing of his responsibility of Rajasthan with Mr. Naidu, chose not to interact with the media persons during his stay here. Even with the ones who followed him rather persistently at the BJP State headquarters on Sardar Patel Marg, he repeatedly said: “I will not make any comments”.

“The whole episode is over. It has ended to everyone’s satisfaction,” Mr. Naidu said.

Reacting to queries from journalists, he added, “Mr. Munde will continue with his Rajasthan assignment. When he is needed in Maharashtra he can also be there.”

Mr. Naidu also dismissed the chance of any adverse impact of the Munde episode on the party workers in Rajasthan. “The development will not have any bearing on the party’s politics here. There is not going to be any fall-out,” he asserted. In fact, a group of party men in Rajasthan too were making a similar demand in the recent past, he noted referring to the demand for change of the State president, which has been complied with.

Strategy for polls

During the day the two BJP leaders met the members of the State executive and the Council of Ministers separately and collectively to discuss the party’s strategy for the coming elections. “We have taken the feedback from the party men. It has been our homework on how to run the campaign and how to bring about better coordination between the party and the Government,” Mr. Naidu revealed.

Mr. Naidu also refuted a report in a local newspaper, quoting intelligence reports, that the BJP was negotiating a tie-up with the Bahujan Samaj Party for the coming elections in Rajasthan.

“Take it from me. The BJP is going to contest all the 200 seats in Rajasthan on its own. There is going to be no poll tie-up with any party,” he asserted.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National