Gag order to BJP leaders on reacting to JD(U) criticism

BJP President Rajnath Singh today issued a gag order to all party leaders from Bihar, asking them not to respond to comments by JD(U) leaders criticising Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi or the alliance.
Sources said the party chief asked BJP leaders from the state to refrain from making public comments which could hurt the alliance further.
Leaders of the two alliance partners are embroiled in a war of words after JD(U) leaders criticised Modi as a possible prime ministerial candidate of NDA, saying he did not possess "secular credentials".
Party sources said BJP President Rajnath Singh asked party leaders from Bihar not to react to comments made by JD-U leaders.

JD(U) is the second largest party in the BJP-led NDA that runs an alliance government in Bihar since 2004.
"All party leaders have been asked to refrain from reacting to comments made by JD(U) leaders and from making public comments against each other as it may hurt the alliance further," said a senior party leader.

Tension is simmering between the two alliance partners after Modi emerged as BJP's possible prime ministerial candidate to which JD(U) has strong objections and it wants a candidate with "secular credentials".
BJP leaders from Bihar including deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, Bihar BJP president Mangal Pandey and leaders like Nand Kishore Yadav, Ashwani Chaubey, and C P Thakur met party's central leaders Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitley where other leaders like Ravi Shankar Prasad, Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Shahnawaz Hussain were also present.

During the meeting, the current political situation in the state was also discussed and BJP asked its leaders to prepare its road map for the next general elections.