'Shotgun' Sinha dares party to act against him

Rebel Bharatiya Janata Party MP Shatrughan Sinha, who has been at unease with the party leadership, on Tuesday virtually dared the party to take action against him.

Reacting to reports that the party leadership was planning to take action against him after the Bihar assembly elections for his recent statements, seen as anti-party, the 69-year-old actor turned MP from Patna Sahib on Tuesday made a series of comments on the twitter.

"After some unofficial news channel reports -- and there's nothing official about it -- people are seeking my reactions on unconfirmed and unofficial report that BJP will take action after the Bihar elections.

"I will not comment on unofficial report spread by vested interests. However one shouldn't forget Newton’s third law 'Every action has an equal and opposite reaction'," tweeted Sinha who is said to be miffed at being "sidelined" in the party and the government.

A top party leader had on Monday hinted at action against Sinha.

"We will deal with him after the counting of votes," he had said, when reporters asked him about what the party planned to do with him in the wake of his recent comments.

Sinha had recently praised Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who has come under severe attack from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a man of development.

He had held a long meeting with Nitish on a day the prime minister had attacked the Bihar chief minister at a big public meeting in Bihar.

He had also asked the party to announce a chief ministerial candidate in Bihar, while on another occasion he suggested that Ram Vilas Paswan could be the NDA candidate for the top post.

"I believe we should have announced our CM candidate. Not putting forward a candidate is a result of some confusion in our own camp," he had tweeted on Monday. 

Sinha had said on Monday, “In my personal capacity and in the larger interest of BJP in general and NDA in particular, I strongly suggest the able, capable, acceptable, respectable and secular Ram Vilas Paswan as the potential/consensus CM candidate of Bihar from our side.”

He added, “The only desirable and advisable personality from our side who will be acceptable to all of us is Ram Vilas Paswan. The ultimate decision of course lies with the party and its parliamentary board.”

Sinha had also created unease in BJP by meeting Delhi Chief Minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal earlier this month.

“Had a very pleasant and heart warming meeting with Sri. Arvind Kejriwal and family at their home,” he had said.  In his praises for Nitish earlier, actor-turned-politician had said, “Being a product of healthy politics with JP, Atalji, Nanaji Deshmukh, Advaniji as my mentors, I avidly support clean politics.”

He said, “Welcome our friend Nitish Kumar’s pledge not to field candidates with criminal background. Hope, wish and pray that others will follow.”

In another tweet earlier, he had said, “Humbled and touched by Nitish ji’s glowing compliments in calling me the pride of Bihar. I am fond of him as a friend and a much respected leader of the masses. Political opponents are not enemies. We can differ in political views but there can be no personal enmity.”

Sinha’s name also cropped up in the controversy over his alleged signing of a petition to the President against the execution of Mumbai terror attack convict Yakub Memon, which Finance Minister Arun Jaitley lamented had “embarrassed” the party and which made him “extremely sad” that he had gone against the party line.

Sinha, however, challenged the party that he never put his signatures on the petition and asked his friends in the party to verify the facts before sharing their “deep embarrassment” in public.

“These reactions are only aimed at pulling each other down and send wrong messages to our detractors,” he had said.