BJP unlikely to take disciplinary action against Yashwant Sinha
, ET Bureau|
Sep 29, 2017, 06.46 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Yashwant Sinha’s scathing attack on finance minister Arun Jaitley has created a buzz in BJP, with opinion divided on whether the veteran politician would face disciplinary action from the party brass, as his remarks are not personal or ideologically out of tune with the BJP that insists it is not averse to criticism from within and outside the organisation.
BJP is likely to rebut Yashwant Sinha’s remarks and let the matter rest. Railway minister Piyush Goyal was the first one to speak in Jaitley’s defence and said transformative changes like demonetisation and launch of the goods and services tax would lead to teething problems which would dissipate with time.
Jaitley himself spoke on the state of the economy at a programme on Thursday evening, where he maintained demonetisation has been a success as it has increased the tax base.
A senior BJP leader said since Sinha’s remarks were about the economy, where the decisions have not been taken by the finance minister alone, any disciplinary action against him could cause bad publicity for the party. Sinha has often held views that has put his party in a fix.
In November 2012, he had demanded that then BJP chief Nitin Gadkari step down in the wake of charges of financial embezzlement against a business concern reportedly close to him.
He was also in favour of early passage of GST when UPA was in power but the party differed with him. BJP insiders maintain that disciplinary action against a leader who criticises a policy or stand has not been the norm. In case of Darbhanga MP Kirti Azad, who had alleged irregularities in DDCA, the suspension was taken as he made personal allegations against the finance minister.
Similarly, Jaswant Singh’s short-term expulsion was necessitated following his praise of Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah in his book, which was considered as going against the core belief of BJP and RSS that Jinnah was responsible for Partition. Singh was later brought back at LK Advani’s behest.
Dissenting voices are not new to BJP though the party has become more ‘disciplined’ since Narendra Modi and Amit Shah took over the reins. But even post-2014, some of the decisions of the party high command were criticised by BJP leaders.
Patna Sahib MP Shatrughan Sinha has often made remarks critical of the party. He has openly supported Yashwant Sinha. When BJP lost the 2015 Bihar assembly polls, party MPs like RK Singh, Bhola Singh and CP Thakur raised several questions.
Sinha, meanwhile, has not spared even his son, Union minister Jayant Sinha, who disagreed with him. The father’s response to the son’s criticism was, if Jayant was so competent, why was he removed from the finance ministry where he was earlier a minister of state.
BJP is likely to rebut Yashwant Sinha’s remarks and let the matter rest. Railway minister Piyush Goyal was the first one to speak in Jaitley’s defence and said transformative changes like demonetisation and launch of the goods and services tax would lead to teething problems which would dissipate with time.
Jaitley himself spoke on the state of the economy at a programme on Thursday evening, where he maintained demonetisation has been a success as it has increased the tax base.
A senior BJP leader said since Sinha’s remarks were about the economy, where the decisions have not been taken by the finance minister alone, any disciplinary action against him could cause bad publicity for the party. Sinha has often held views that has put his party in a fix.
In November 2012, he had demanded that then BJP chief Nitin Gadkari step down in the wake of charges of financial embezzlement against a business concern reportedly close to him.
He was also in favour of early passage of GST when UPA was in power but the party differed with him. BJP insiders maintain that disciplinary action against a leader who criticises a policy or stand has not been the norm. In case of Darbhanga MP Kirti Azad, who had alleged irregularities in DDCA, the suspension was taken as he made personal allegations against the finance minister.
Similarly, Jaswant Singh’s short-term expulsion was necessitated following his praise of Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah in his book, which was considered as going against the core belief of BJP and RSS that Jinnah was responsible for Partition. Singh was later brought back at LK Advani’s behest.
Dissenting voices are not new to BJP though the party has become more ‘disciplined’ since Narendra Modi and Amit Shah took over the reins. But even post-2014, some of the decisions of the party high command were criticised by BJP leaders.
Patna Sahib MP Shatrughan Sinha has often made remarks critical of the party. He has openly supported Yashwant Sinha. When BJP lost the 2015 Bihar assembly polls, party MPs like RK Singh, Bhola Singh and CP Thakur raised several questions.
Sinha, meanwhile, has not spared even his son, Union minister Jayant Sinha, who disagreed with him. The father’s response to the son’s criticism was, if Jayant was so competent, why was he removed from the finance ministry where he was earlier a minister of state.
