Already under fire from the rebel leaders in the party, BJP president Rajnath Singh is facing heat on the home turf too, with a senior state leader and former RSS functionary asking him to resign in the interests of the party.

Former MLA Bhrigu Narain Dwivedi on Wednesday shot off a letter to Singh, asking him to resign from his post of party president to save the BJP from further damage. “Under your leadership, the BJP is in tatters. So, you must quit to save the party from sinking altogether,” said the letter sent by the 80-year-old former MLA from Basti, who has also been a sanghchalak of the RSS in the state.

Voices of dissent have also started rising against state BJP president Ramapati Ram Tripathi, who is also said to be close to Singh.

Former MP from Khalilabad, Ashtbhuja Prasad Shukla, said the party needs introspection.

“With the results of the Lok Sabha elections, the party needs to reflect on what is wrong with the leadership in different states.

If fingers are being pointed on B C Khanduri or Vasundhra Raje, why isn’t anyone looking at Uttar Pradesh?” said Shukla.

“It’s time for a change in the party, especially in the leadership. The party seniors should also find out how Tripathi has managed to handle his responsibility,” he added.

Rajendra Tiwari, a former regional general secretary of the party from Basti, echoed the sentiments. “After the Lok Sabha results, Tripathi should have resigned on moral grounds.” The state BJP leadership refused to comment on the issue.