The outburst of dissident Bharatiya Janata Party leaders against the party came full circle with its National working committee member and senior leader of Chhattisgarh Karuna Shukla on Saturday afternoon resigning from the primary membership of the party in a huff alleging she was neglected in all forums by the party which she served for the last 32 years.
The former BJP Member of Parliament, while criticising the party leaders, lamented that the party did not need her services anymore as the power has taken over the Saffron organisation with just two-three leaders running it in the State.
Notably, Karuna Shukla, niece of fomer Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, has been Member of legislative Assembly from Balodabazaar twice besides being Member of Parliament from Janjgir-Champa parliamentary constituency. She lost Parliamentary election from Korba constituency to Charandas Mahant of the Congress which she alleged that she was forced to fight the poll against her wishes. Shukla also held the post of National vice president of the party as well as National president of BJP Mahila Morcha.
Presently she was member of party’s national working committee. She was willing to contest Assembly poll from Beltara constituency and had staked her claim but the State party leadership overlooked it enraging her further as earlier she was allegedly kept completely out of the purview of election process by the State leadership denying even the post of observer.
She finally faxed her resignation to BJP National president Rajnath Singh and General Secretary (Organisation) Ramlal Saturday afternoon requesting them to accept it forthwith as the party hardly needed her services.
Talking to reporters after sending her resignation from the party she said that now party did not need her services and created such an embarrassing situation that she decided on her own to quit. She however did not reveal her future plan saying that she would give time to her family first even if her political activities would continue.
According to sources, Shukla had gone to Delhi a fortnight ago and had talked to lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Shushma Swaraj on phone but even after repeated requests for five days she was not given time by party president Rajnath Singh.
Stunned by her abrupt decision to quit from the primary membership of the party, State BJP leaders like Ramesh Bais, Parliamentarian and sitting Mahila Morcha president Saroj Pandey and others refused any comment. On the other hand, Congress leaders including CGPCC president Charandas Mahant favoured to invite her to the Congress even if AICC Treasurer Motilal Vora termed her resignation as internal matter of the BJP.