Worried BJP gags leaders

In a bid to stop the party leaders' infighting in public, Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh on Saturday issued a gag order on its leaders and functionaries from talking to media, formally or informally.

Earlier, Rajnath Singh chose not to confirm senior leader Yashwant Sinha's resignation as one of the vice presidents in protest as his name was being mentioned in the party circles that he was one of the leaders who supported Jaswant Singh who challenged L K Advani's leadership.

"I have been told about it by the television networks. I will go back to my office and see if the letter is on my table," he said, in response to a question.

The BJP president said the appointment of Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj as leader of the party in Rajya Sabha and deputy leader in the Lok Sabha was the party's collective decision and there was no link between performance and appointment.

"Victory and defeat are collective responsibility and should be taken in that spirit," he replied.

"Recent statements and interaction of some our party leaders on various media platforms appear to have created an impression in some quarters that the party's leadership is in disarray and is not analysing the reasons behind the defeat. This is far from the truth. The BJP leadership stands united and is already in the process of analysing the outcome to assess why the party could not get the mandate. This obviously has to be an exhaustive and collective exercise and it has already begun at various levels. The entire process will culminate in a detailed Chintan Baithak after the conclusion of the Parliament session in August," he said.

But, he refused give details.