Now, Raje's rebellion haunts BJP

It’s raining troubles for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). After its senior leader and Rajya Sabha member Arun Shourie launched a diatribe against the party’s top brass on television last night, today it was the turn of Vasundhara Raje, former Rajasthan chief minister, to challenge the party’s authority to sack her.

An angry Raje, who had been holding talks with party chief Rajnath Singh for the past two days here, left for Jaipur this afternoon. Sources said Singh had refused to accept her preconditions for tendering resignation as the leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly following the party’s two successive electoral defeats in that state.

Raje, who had met Singh and L K Advani after the party’s chintan baithak in Shimla, for a possible reconciliation, wanted to have a say in selection of her successor.

Party sources say Raje’s refusal to go by the party’s diktat had unnerved the BJP even more than Shourie’s remarks.

The tension between Raje and the party is likely to heighten if she goes ahead with her decision to meet the state legislature party in Jaipur tomorrow. Sources said Singh had clearly told Raje that she must not call such a meeting.