'Margdarshak Mandal' has very important role in BJP: Sambit Patra

Attempting to downplay the move to drop Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi from the Parliamentary Board, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sambit Patra on Wednesday said that his party is a family and the 'Margdarshak Mandal' (guiding group) also has a very important role to play.

"The Bharatiya Janata Party considers the party as a family and in the family the advisory board has a very important role," Patra told ANI here.

"We have called this board as 'Margdarshak Mandal' and Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi are both part of the 'Margdarshak Mandal' in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh are also a part," he added.

Patra, who is also the BJP's spokesperson, further said that to see 'Margdarshak Mandal' as a non-important body is appalling.

"To see this body as a non-important body is appalling. I believe that this body will guide us through difficult times and this body will bring up the party's ideology in the best possible manner," said Patra.

"Ironically, the Congress which is commenting on it knows very well that in the Congress it is the family which is the party and that is the reason as to why they cannot understand the reasons in which a democracy in a party functions," he added.

Earlier on Tuesday, the BJP dropped former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and veterans Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi from the BJP Parliamentary Board, which is the party's highest decision-making body.