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Tag: Gulab Chand Kataria

  • BJP rift sharpens in Rajasthan as Raje loyalist Meghwal to bring censure motion against Kataria

    Express News Service

    JAIPUR: In a move that has sharpened the rift in the Rajasthan BJP, former Speaker and senior BJP MLA Kailash Meghwal will bring a censure motion against the party’s current Leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria. Meghwal has written a letter to the state BJP chief Satish Poonia informing him about the decision and has asked Poonia to preside over the BJP legislature meeting where the censure motion will be introduced.  

    In a letter also sent to national BJP President JP Nadda, Meghwal has claimed that Kataria’s irresponsible statements damaged the party in the recent byelections. He has also alleged that Kataria had taken huge sums of money for distributing tickets in the past.

    The move by Meghwal, just ahead of the monsoon session of the Rajasthan Assembly, is set to intensify the infighting in the BJP as he is considered a strong supporter of Vasundhara Raje. In the letter to state party president Poonia, Meghwal accused the Leader of Opposition Gulabchand Kataria of harming the party’s interests in the recently held bypolls through his statements.

    In his letter, Meghwal has claimed that he will bring a censure proposal condemning Kataria during the meeting of party legislators. The resolution will be to condemn Kataria for his statements on Maharana Pratap and Lord Rama, which ‘caused loss to the party’ during the recent by-elections, according to Meghwal’s letter to Poonia written on September 4. In the campaign for the bypolls in Rajsamand in April, Kataria had sparked a controversy by making ‘derogatory’ remarks on Rajput ruler Maharana Pratap which triggered widespread criticism. Later, he also said that without the BJP, ‘Shri Ram’ would have been in the sea.

    Meghwal, in his letter, also alleged that though Kataria tries to claim a clean image for himself, under him, posts and party tickets have been sold for lakhs and crores in the past. Meghwal even stated that but for RSS backing for Kataria, numerous people will speak out against him.

    Meghwal even reveals in his letter that in 2008 some senior BJP leaders of the state, namely Gulab Chand Kataria, Ghanshyam Tiwari and Arun Chaturvedi had vowed on Ganga-Jal that they would never support Vasundhara Raje. But for his own selfish interests, Kataria was the first one to break this vow and switched over to the Raje camp for some years. Besides BJP national president JP Nadda, Meghwal has sent copies of his letter to several senior leaders including RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Dattatreya Hosabole, Union minister Amit Shah, Rajasthan in charge Arun Singh, Om Mathur and Vasundhara Raje.

    Meghwal’s letter emerged on the day that Rajasthan in-charge Arun Singh came to Jaipur on Wednesday for a two-day trip — and it has quickly gone viral on social media. In a guarded response, Leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria has stated that he will “happily accept whatever decision the party seniors take on this matter.”  

    Meanwhile, the BJP has started a damage control exercise on Meghwal’s letter controversy. Talking to reporters at the airport on Wednesday, BJP state in-charge Arun Singh gave a stern warning to Meghwal and advised him to refrain from making such allegations. “I will talk to him to find out why he has written this letter. Such statements cause damage to the party and hurt the sentiments of lakhs of workers,” he said.

    Political observers, however, do not see this as just a personal issue between Meghwal and Kataria. They believe this matter reflects the long-standing bitterness between Raje loyalists and the RSS lobby in the state unit. With this row exploding just a day ahead of the Assembly session, the focus of the Rajasthan BJP will now be less on putting the Congress in the dock and more on tackling the dispute between party veterans Meghwal and Kataria and preventing the divide within the state unit from becoming a huge embarrassment.

  • Now, 22-year-old letter of Rajasthan BJP chief Satish Poonia sharpens party rift

    Express News Service
    JAIPUR: The infighting in the Rajasthan BJP has led to a strange situation as a letter written by Rajasthan BJP president Satish Poonia 22 years ago has become the focal point of the party’s internal rift.

    Days after the state unit issued a notice to a Vasundhra Raje loyalist Rohitash Sharma, the letter by the current BJP chief has been leaked and gone viral on social media. While his critics are using this letter to project that Poonia used to flout party discipline in the past, Poonia says it’s a conspiracy to defame him and has questioned why his letter, written over decades ago, has now been leaked.

    In this 22-year-old letter, Satish Poonia had expressed his anger against senior BJP leaders of that time including former Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and Rajendra Rathore, currently the Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly. In the letter, Poonia had lashed out at several top leaders of the Rajasthan BJP and accused them of conniving against him to deny him the BJP ticket for an upcoming election. Poonia had sent the letter to Gulab Chand Kataria, who was then the Rajasthan BJP president and Poonia had in protest, sent his resignation as the BJP’s state youth wing president.

    Poonia’s letter has been leaked just a few days after one of Vasundhra Raje’s close supporters and former minister Rohitash Sharma was issued a notice and asked to explain his recent statements within 15 days. Sharma had claimed that Raje should be the CM face for the 2023 elections in Rajasthan and alleged that currently, state BJP leaders are running the party just by sitting in their offices.

    While Rohitash Sharma is yet to respond to the party’s notice on charges of indiscipline, he was quick to use the old letter of Satish Poonia to embarrass the state BJP Chief.  Sharma remarked, “it is strange that a person who crossed all limits of indiscipline in the past, is now trying to enforce discipline on others. What discipline can a person teach others when he has committed gross indiscipline? This is really a sad situation.”

    In response, Poonia has questioned the timing of its leakage, over two decades after he wrote it. After the letter went viral, Poonia took to Twitter to defend himself and stated that ” this is a political conspiracy against me since I am a simple man from a village background who many city folks cannot digest. I can’t understand what is the relevance today of a letter written 22 years ago.”

    While nobody knows who has leaked it, inner circles in the BJP suspect that Poonia critics, possibly from the Raje faction, behind it. With Raje loyalists getting aggressive and the Poonia camp keen to enforce discipline, the rift in the Rajasthan BJP is widening with each passing day.

  • Rajasthan bypolls: BJP leader draws Rajput ire for comments on warrior king Maharana Pratap

    Express News Service
    JAIPUR:  In the final phase of campaigning for three by-elections due in Rajasthan on April 17, the BJP has earned the ire of Rajput outfits over a controversial remark made by senior party leader Gulab Chand Kataria on warrior king Maharana Pratap.

    Though the opposition leader apologised saying his “selection of words” for the Mewar king was not right, Karni Sena activists directed their ire at BJP posters blackening Kataria’s pictures at the party office in Jaipur and threatened to blacken his face as well.

    They also demanded his sacking as leader of the Opposition. T rouble for Kataria began after he addressed a public gathering in Rajsamand on Sunday.

    “Our ancestors fought for years. The recent example is Maharana Pratap. Was he bitten by a mad dog that he left his kingdom and fort to wander in jungles? For whom did he do it?”

    Kataria asked in Hindi in his speech at an election meeting organised for party candidate Deepti Maheshwari from Rajsamand.

    His remark triggered anger among the Rajputs and video clipsnof his speech went viral. Udaipur’s royal family scion Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar charged that undignified language was used for Maharana Pratap whose “name is synonymous with valour and struggle”.

    In a message on his Facebook page, Lakshyaraj, also a descendant of Maharana Pratap, said words should be chosen carefully. Rajput youths defaced Kataria’s posters in Jaipur and shouted slogans against him.

    Narayan Singh Divrala, the district president of Shree Rajput Karni Sena said: “Kataria has insulted Maharana Pratap by using such a language. The next time we see him, we will blacken his face.” Kataria soon came out with an apology.

    “I respect Maharana Pratap. If anyone is hurt by my statement, I apologise,” he said.

    Kataria held the home portfolio in the former Vasundhra Raje-led BJP government in Rajasthan. Due to the storm over his controversial remarks, Kataria, is now being provided special security.

    Given the growing resentment, political experts say this could impact BJP prospects as Rajputs are a major vote bank for the party.