Rajnath the only 'sane' BJP leader: Congress

Backing Home minister Rajnath Singh's alleged view that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should not crush dissent and heed the views of party veterans, the Congress on Friday lauded him saying he was the only sensible leader in the ruling party.

"Completely agree with what Rajnath said and I feel that he is the only sensible leader at present in the BJP. Advani and MM Joshi are those people who made the BJP what it is today. And the BJP is talking about taking action on those who are trying to show them the way and make them realise that they are mistaken," Congress leader Rashid Alvi told ANI.

According to reports, Singh expressed his support for L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Yashwant Sinha and Shanta Kumar, and backed their dissent saying they have contributed immensely to BJP's growth.

Earlier, however, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had defended the criticism against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah and had demanded action against those making 'irresponsible' statements that were hurting the party's image.

BJP veterans L.K. Advani, M.M. Joshi, Shanta Kumar and Yashwant Sinha had issued a statement rebuking the party leadership saying they had clearly leant nothing from their loss in the Delhi Assembly elections.

"The results of the Bihar elections show that no lesson has been learnt, from the fiasco in Delhi. To say that everyone is responsible for the defeat in Bihar is to ensure that no one is held responsible," the veterans said in statement.

The party top brass was quick in issuing a counter statement to appease their furious party veterans, saying they have been 'fortunate' to be led by L.K. Advani for decades and 'welcome' any guidance and suggestion by the senior leaders.

However, it was quick to remind the veterans that the BJP won the Lok Sabha elections last year under the leadership Prime Minister Narendra Modi and thereafter, the party had success in the Assembly Elections of Jharkhand, Haryana, Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andamans, Kerala and Assam.