Jinnah-struck: BJP expels Jaswant Singh

BJP has expelled its senior leader Jaswant Singh from the party after his remarks on Jinnah had 'embarrassed' the Saffron outfit. Congress had termed BJP as Bharatiya 'Jinnah' Party.

At its brainstorming session that began in Shimla on Wednesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) decided to expel Sing. His primary membership of the party has also been cancelled with immediate effect.

Singh's recent book on partition, presents a different picture of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, and terms him a secular pesonality. Jaswant Singh also called him a great Indian and said that Nehru, rather than Jinnah, was responsible for partition.

In an interview he had also said that India had demonised Jinnah. Earlier Advani had also termed Jinnah a secular person. The hardliners in the party were outraged at the pro-Jinnah stand of Jaswant Singh.

They felt that his criticism of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, and the praise of Jinnah had sent wrong message to the party workers and the electorate. It was felt that this would create ideological confusion.

TIH Bureau