Vasundhara unwell, will not quit in a hurry
August 31st, 2009 - 6:34 pm ICT by IANS
New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje of the BJP, who was Monday expected to submit her resignation as leader of opposition in the state assembly, appears reluctant to give in easily, conveying to the party leadership that she was unwell.
Raje, who is being blamed for the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) debacle in the Lok Sabha elections in the state and earlier in the assembly elections, had been summoned to Delhi after days of haggling in the wake of party chief Rajnath Singh asking her to quit.
The Rajasthan leader Monday sent her son Dushyant Singh to meet senior party leader M. Venkaiah Naidu, who is handling the “Rajasthan crisis ” currently in the party.
A senior party leader, who is part of the efforts to defuse the ongoing crisis in Rajasthan unit of the party, told IANS: “Vasundhara Raje has conveyed she is not well, probably she has viral fever; so she won’t be able to meet party leaders and submit her resignation immediately.”
Dodging questions, Dushyant Singh, who met Venkaiah Naidu in Delhi, only said: “Bas ram ram karne gaye the (It was just a courtesy call).”
Asked the purpose of his meeting Naidu, he told IANS: “I cannot say anything more on this.” And regarding his mother’s health, he said: “Right now, I cannot say anything more on this.”
The former Rajasthan chief minister was asked to quit earlier this month as leader of opposition but she had initially refused to do so arguing that she alone could not be held responsible for the poll debacle.
Over 50 legislators out of the 78 of the BJP in the state even came down to Delhi and met Rajnath Singh while they shouted slogans outside party veteran L.K. Advani’s residence after the latter refused to meet them.
Finally, sources said, a compromise formula was worked out under which Raje would resign but on certain conditions — that she be given a plum organisational post, her replacement should be of her choice and two MLAs suspended for backing her be reinstated.
Accordingly, she was to quit after the conclusion of the state assembly session Friday.
Tags: assembly elections, bharatiya janata party, bjp, chief minister, compromise formula, courtesy call, karne, l k advani, leader of opposition, lok sabha elections, mlas, party chief, party leader, party leadership, poll debacle, raje, rajnath singh, state assembly, venkaiah naidu, viral fever