Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday questioned the present culture inside the BJP which was far different from what was preached by its founding fathers.
In reference to the way some of its senior leaders like LK Advani and MM Joshi were ignored in distribution of tickets, Banerjee said “BJP is a party that does not respect its veterans,” wondering those who did not pay adequate respect to the veterans were well bred.
Hitting out at the BJP for ignoring Advani who made the BJP what it was today she said “Advani was the actual mentor for BJP. They have forgotten old days because of the new crop of leaders. But old is gold. It is an insult to him.”
She remembered how “I have worked under Vajpayee and Advani,” when the former was the Prime Minister of India.
She however said that it was her personal feeling and that “they may not agree to it.” Neither Advani nor Joshi were given nominations by the BJP and it is alleged that they were not even taken into confidence before distributing the tickets.
On whether the party patriarch should quit the party Banerjee said, it would not look nice. “He is a leader respected in the party and has been there from the beginning.”