BJP waits for Munde’s next move,Congress has ‘open mind’ on him

With Munde making overtures to the Congress and keeping a distance from the BJP leadership on Monday,a worried party top brass went into a huddle at L K Advani’s residence.

Aware of his attempts to reach out to the Congress,sources said,the party leadership decided to wait for his next move rather than making more efforts to placate him or acting against him in a haste. Apart from party chief Nitin Gadkari,Rajnath Singh,Sushma Swaraj and Venkaiah Naidu,the BJP in-charge of Maharashtra affairs,attended the meeting. The RSS was also represented.

On Sunday too,Gadkari as also Naidu and Ananth Kumar were closeted with Munde at Advani’s residence till late evening to mollify the influential OBC leader from Maharashtra. According to sources close to him,Munde wants a greater say in party affairs in the state and his objections to certain appointments are just a ruse. Munde was also said to be aspiring for the post of Leader of the Opposition in the state,replacing Eknath Khadse.

Munde had been ticked off by the central leadership on Sunday for going public with his reservation against certain decisions made by the party. While he has been unhappy for some time for being “marginalised” in the party affairs in the state,the latest trigger was the party’s decision to appoint Vikas Mathkari,known to be close to Gadkari,as Pune unit chief,overlooking his nominee Yogesh Gogawale.

A meeting of BJP MPs,MLAs,MLCs and office-bearers from Maharashtra has been convened by state party chief and Gadkari loyalist Sudhir Mungantiwar in Mumbai on Tuesday. The attendance at the meeting would give the party an idea about the number of elected representatives and leaders who back Munde.

However,AICC in-charge of Maharashtra Mohan Prakash parried questions about Munde’s overtures to the Congress. “He is a senior leader and as per political propriety,it would not be proper to comment on him. He has told the press that his rivals in his party are spreading this (his talks with the Congress),” Prakash said. “Although it is an internal affair of the BJP,it has been the track record of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the BJP to use backward class leaders and throw them out when they become powerful. The same thing happened with Kalyan Singh and Uma Bharti. Munde seems to be the next.”

A Union Minister from Maharashtra said Munde would have to snap ties with the BJP before the Congress took a call on his entry into the party. “As far as I know,he is still undecided. The pros and cons of his entry into the Congress will be assessed and discussed only after he leaves the BJP. But,of course,if a leader of Munde’s stature leaves the BJP,it will be a big blow for them,” he told The Indian Express.