Former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha on Saturday finally severed his decades’ old relations with the BJP and announced to demolish the forces that he said were ruining the democratic institutions like Parliament, judiciary, Election Commission and the media and using them for their own political ends.
The senior leader attacked the party, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the NDA Government at a function of Rashtra Manch, an apolitical front which Sinha had launched in January.
“Democracy is in grave danger and the democratic institutions are being murdered. let us pledge to eliminate the people who have posed danger to these institutions,” said Sinha and announced amid applause that he was breaking all links with the BJP.
He said he is quitting party politics and would not join any other party.
Reacting to Sinha’s decision, the BJP said it’s not surprised as his comments and writings made it clear that he was no longer in the organisation and was acting at the Congress’ behest.
“It was clear from his comments and writing that he was no longer in the BJP. The party gave him a lot of respect and important positions but his conduct has been improper. His comments sounded more like that of a Congress leader or somebody working at the behest of the opposition party,” BJP spokesperson and national media head Anil Baluni said.
In his inaugural speech former bureaucrat Sinha said his heart beats for the nation and would not sit idle when the country is under threat.
“If we remain silent today, the coming generation will never forgive us,” he said and stressed on the need for a big movement once again from Bihar to save democracy.
He accused the Centre of shortening Parliament sessions and even alleged that the Budget Session was washed out in a planned manner because the Government wanted this only escape a no confidence motion.
“The Centre had planned the disruption and it had no concern for the situation. Had it been serious, the PM should have invited leaders of all the parties for talks. But he did not because he was happy that the parliament was not running,” he alleged.
Similarly, he went on, the judiciary and Election Commission besides Central agencies like CBI, NIA, ED, I-T were working selectively at the instigation of the Centre. The media, he alleged, was only concealing the truth and in TV debates and participants are being decided by those in the power.
leaders of different parties, including RJD’s Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Sanjay Singh and Ashutosh of AAP, Dinesh Trivedi of TMC, Renuka Choudhary of the Congress and others were present. Also present was BJP’s Patna Sahib MP Shatrughan Sinha who is a close confidant of Sinha.
Shatrughan though did not announce quitting BJP he made caustic remarks against the party leadership. He said on several occasions there had been talks that party would take action against him but it failed to do so. In a threatening tone he said, “If party takes action (against me) there will be reaction (from the public).
The cine star of yesteryears questioned the victory of BJP in Gujarat Assembly polls and said questions were raised if the party won because of EVM or other factors.
He said once he was being the star campaigner but was not invited in Bihar elections and people taught a bitter lesson to the party, Similarly in UP and other States election he was ignored.
“I did not join the party to leave it. Time and again I said the BJP is my first and last party but if they want to oust me they are free to do but at their own risk. If they want to close the chapter they should do it quickly,” said the Shotgun.
But he added, “I will maintain discipline until I am in the party.” He said no individual or party is bigger than the nation and that he was not scared of anybody. “What I am saying is not a revolt against any party but it is in the larger interest of the nation,” he added.
leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi said his father lalu Prasad had said in 2014 that if Modi became PM the country would disintegrate and now the BJP is doing the same thing. He alleged that series of communal riots broke out in Bihar during and after Ram Navmi because the social disturbances had been planned during the two week long stay of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Bihar just before the festival.