Fissures Surface in Maharashtra BJP, Former MP Rejects Election Responsibility

Mumbai:Senior BJP leader Kirit Somaiya’s open defiance of the party directives refusing to take up an election responsibility has brought to the fore the growing discontent within the saffron party ahead of the forthcoming Vidhan Sabha polls in Maharashtra. In the letter, the former Mumbai MP termed the treatment given to him as ‘insulting’ despite working hard for the party.

In a letter to Raosaheb Danve, chairman of the party’s state election campaign committee, Somaiya on Tuesday refused to head state BJP’s panel to coordinate with the Election Commission of India for Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha polls, stating that he should have been consulted beforehand.

The senior BJP leader on Wednesday continued with his defiant stand emphasizing his work as an ordinary party member and the importance of grassroots workers over high-ranking officials. “I have proven that the weight of an ordinary worker in the party has to be more than that of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and party’s state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule,” he said.

Somaiya also said that he has been working as an ordinary worker of the party and was not greedy for any post.

According to political observers, the former MP’s aggressive approach and refusal to accept the party position has highlighted ongoing internal disputes in the BJP as it was preparing for the Vidhan Sabha polls. There is a lot of disillusionment brewing in the party as party cadre feels honest leaders and workers are being sidelined despite working wholeheartedly for the outfit, they said.

A BJP functionary, on the condition of anonymity, said that Somaiya’s defiance has not gone down well with the party leadership and the former MP may be asked to clarify on the issue.

When asked for comment about Somaiya’s refusal, state BJP chief Bawankule said, “Somaiya is our senior leader. It is a rule in the BJP that we do not ask anyone, we delegate responsibilities. The party did not discuss with me whether I wanted to become state chief or not. I was made state chief directly.”

In a letter to Danve, Somaiya, while refusing to take up the election responsibility, had termed the treatment given to him as ‘insulting.’

“It is wrong to appoint me as communication chief with the Election Commission of India for Maharashtra assembly polls without even discussing it with me. I disapprove of it, but you can appoint someone else for that position,” read his letter.

“I am not a member of this committee, and I request you and the state president not to treat me so insultingly,” Somaiya added.