Shatrughan Sinha leaves BJP brass red faced with anti-Yatra remark

When top BJP leaders have been defending themselves for undertaking a tiranga yatra to Jammu and Kashmir, Lok Sabha MP Shatrughan Sinha has struck a dissent note, leaving the party brass red faced.

When top BJP leaders have been defending themselves for undertaking a tiranga yatra to Jammu and Kashmir, Lok Sabha MP Shatrughan Sinha has struck a dissent note, leaving the party brass red faced.

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Sinha feels the timing of the party's failed campaign to hoist the national flag in Srinagar was not appropriate and that the advice given by the key ally JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar to desist from that was "valid".

As TV channels carried Sinha’s statement, BJP general secretary (organization) Ram Lal contacted Sinha to find out whether he had indeed made such a statement. BJP sources said Lal asked Sinha to issue a clarification if he had not made such a statement as claimed by the latter.

Sinha's remark came on a day when senior BJP leader L K Advani wrote in his blog that BJP had done a singular service to the cause of the country’s unity and integrity, for which the party's founder Shyama Prasad Mookherjee sacrificed his life.

In an interaction with PTI journalists, Sinha said the BJP has been able corner the government on major issues of corruption like those related to 2G spectrum allocation, CWG and Adarsh Housing Society and nothing should be done to dilute that.

"When you have a potent issue like JPC into the 2G spectrum scam in hand...it was not politically good time (to go for the Tiranga yatra)...it would have been better if it had not happened now," said Sinha.

Asked whether he had given any advice to the party leaders not to undertake the Ekta Yatra, he referred to the "valid" suggestion given by Nitish Kumar in this regard.

Questioned about Yeddyurappa, Sinha said, "There is no comparison between 2G scam, CWG scam and Adarsh scam with the allegations being levelled against Yeddyurappa. But one should not talk in the language of small thieves and big thieves."

He said the BJP would do better to "nip in the bud" the problem at a time when it was projecting a high moral ground on corruption.