Advani blasts BJP, quits party posts

BJP veteran L.K. Advani Monday quit from all major posts in the party, accusing most of its leaders of being concerned "just with their personal agendas".

Advani shot off an angry letter to Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh a day after the party named Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as head of the Lok Sabha campaign committee.

The three-para letter made no reference to Modi but its tone made it clear that the resignation was linked to the chief minister's elevation - opposed by Advani - at a party conclave in Goa Sunday.

"For some time I have been finding it difficult to reconcile either with the current functioning of the party, or the direction in which it is going," Advani said.

He said he no longer had "the feeling that this is the same idealistic party" created by Shyama Prasad Mookerji, Panadit Deen Dayal Upadhyay, Nanaji Deshmukh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee "whose sole concern was the country and its people".

"Most leaders of ours are now concerned just with their personal agendas," the letter said.

"I have decided, therefore, to resign from the three main fora of the party: national executive, the parliamentary board and the election committee. This may be regarded as my resignation letter."