Sinha posters expose BJP squabbles

The internal squabbling in the BJP surfaced on Thursday in its worst manifestation with posters charging senior leader Yashwant Sinha as “Kingpin of Scams” sprouting in the capital.

The derogatory posters appeared near the party headquarters on Ashoka Road two days after Sinha had sought party president Nitin Gadkari’s resignation as the latter was facing income tax probe on dubious business deals.

The poster, having the BJP flag colours green and saffron as background and printed in Hindi carries the headline, “Ghotalon Ki Sardar (Kingpin of Scams)”  adjacent to a photograph of Yashwant Sinha.

The text starts with, “he has forgotten his own tainted history”. The second sentence reads: “The man who back-stabbed the party.” The final sentence states, “corrupt Yashwant Sinha”.

Interestingly, Sinha, who was seen in Parliament told reporters: “I have not seen the posters but I was told about it. I wish those who are responsible for these defamatory posters identify themselves so that we could start a debate.”  

When the BJP’s reaction was sought, spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said: “BJP condemns these posters. This is the job of some mischief mongers and we condemn the act.”

Interestingly, Sinha got a warm welcome from the party leaders when they assembled in Parliament on Thursday morning to participate in the winter session. Party MP from Patna Shatrughan Sinha was seen with Yashwant Sinha while he was giving his reaction to reporters on FDI in retail and the posters that have come up against him.