BJP to aggressively counter attacks on its leaders

Bracing for an Opposition onslaught in Parliament, the government and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday decided to aggressively counter the attack on its leaders such as Sushma Swaraj, Vasundhara Raje and Shivraj Singh Chouhan and rake up controversies related to Congress leaders.

With Parliament convening on Tuesday for the monsoon session, BJP chief Amit Shah held strategy meetings with various party colleagues, including Union Ministers Arun Jaitley, Swaraj, Smriti Irani, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Piyush Goyal as well as party spokespersons. Raje, the chief minister of Rajasthan, was also present. Subsequently, Shah, along with Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and Venkaiah Naidu, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fine-tune the strategy.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Chouhan also landed in Delhi later in the evening to participate in the discussions.

Making it evident that there will be no resignations, the party discussed how to counter the Opposition attack in Parliament and harmonise of the response of the government and the party on these issues, sources said.

The Congress has threatened to disrupt Parliament if its demands for ouster of Raje, External Affairs Minister Swaraj and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Chouhan are not acceded to. Raje is under attack for her links with former IPL Chairman Lalit Modi, who is facing ED probe. Swaraj is also accused of helping Lalit Modi. Chouhan is under the Opposition fire in Vyapam scam. BJP does not want to be seen on the defensive on the controversial issues plaguing the party.