New Delhi: Criticising firebrand leader Uma Bharti's comments and actions at the Madhya Pradesh BJP Legislature party meeting, senior BJP leader and former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee termed it as the "height of indiscipline" and said such actions will not be tolerated.
"Whatever happened was the height of indiscipline. Internal competition within parties is a sign of healthy politics, but when it transforms into lust for power and crosses all limits, it creates difficulties in the future," an enraged Vajpayee said.
He also hinted at a possible disciplinary action against Bharti. "All the developments were under the consideration of the party and indiscipline will not be tolerated howsoever big the person is and whatever the issue may be," he said.
Referring to Bharti's refusal to accept Shivraj Singh Chouhan as new Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, he said the party had succeeded in the last Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections with a majority.
"If there is a change and sometimes change is natural and necessary, it should be accepted."
"When chair (power) becomes bigger than our idealism and idealism is put at stake for the lust of power, people will not accept it neither will we tolerate it," he said.
As the legislature party meeting got underway at the BJP state headquarters in Bhopal on Monday, hundreds of Bharati supporters went on the rampage in the premises smashing chairs and other furniture, pulling down a decorated arch and burning effigies of senior BJP leaders, including that of party General Secretary Arun Jaitley.
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Saffron-clad Bharati stormed out of the meeting in a huff along with 17 MLAs loyal to her and announced at an impromptu rally of her supporters that she would undertake a 'padyatra' to Ayodhya to protest the party central parliamentary board's decision selecting Chouhan to replace Gaur.
Vajpayee's statement comes as a setback to Bharati, who had already incurred the wrath of the entire second generation leadership in the party.
The former Prime Minister, along with senior leader Jaswant Singh, were considered sympathetic to her cause and played a key role in her nomination as party General Secretary
at the Centre.
Bharati has already earned the ire of the RSS after she targeted its Joint General Secretary Suresh Soni and charged him with "interfering" in the party's Madhya Pradesh unit.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad, which had once even wanted her to become the party President, has also distanced itself from her Ayodhya Yatra.
VHP firebrand leader Praveen Togadia has been particularly at odds with her after she targeted him for his remarks against BJP Chief L K Advani after his controversial statement on Pakistan founder Mohd Ali Jinnah.
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