New Delhi: BJP President Nitin Gadkari on Friday remained evasive on whether his party will fight the 2014 general elections with a prime ministerial candidate at its vanguard, saying the decision would be taken at an appropriate time and all party leaders were "good faces".
He also refused to hint whether results of the five state Assembly elections will have any bearing on his presidential term but admitted that his party needed to "rectify" the issues of concern in Karnataka.
At a lengthy interaction with women journalists in New Delhi, Gadkari spoke in detail about the policy paralysis bedeviling the UPA government but remained largely on guard over questions about the BJP and its internal issues.
"There are a number of leaders and a decision will be taken at an appropriate time. Even the Congress party has not officially declared when and which candidate will be projected as the prime ministerial candidate," the BJP chief said.
"When it is appropriate time, we will decide within a fraction of second. We are all good faces," he replied when asked if the party will go into the 2014 polls with a prime ministerial face or not.
The question over Narendra Modi, his absence from campaigning and whether it meant he was not needed outside Gujarat, Gadkari said the Chief Minister "was very busy within his state" in the middle of sadbhavana yatras, but the BJP was a party of workers.
"In UP where a lot of people had left the party, we had a situation to deal with, but the leaders have given it their all. Results are difficult to predict but I am very positive," he said, pointing out that the party benefited by the roles of Sanjay Joshi, Narendra Tomar and especially Uma Bharti.
He repeatedly attacked the UPA government over the "lack" of movement in policy matters of economic importance and said the government was "vindictive" towards the opposition and was misusing CBI and other agencies to this effect.
Gadkari said he had taken "cognisance" of party MP Varun Gandhi's statement that BJP has 55 chief ministerial candidates in UP, and maintained such remarks were not good for the party.
"What he said was not right. I have been worried about party members' indulging in giving statements. I have taken cognisance of the incident," he said.
His term as the BJP President ending in 2013, Gadkari said he was open to any role in the party and will do whatever is required of him.
"I have never asked anybody for my term. I can work at any post the party gives me," he said. "But whatever I do, I do it seriously and religiously. My DNA is a little militant, which is not BJP," he said in a lighter vein.
On recent incidents in Karnataka, where two legislators were found watching porn inside the Assembly, Gadkari admitted there was need as well as room for improvement.
"I discussed Karnataka with party bosses. As far as the performance of the government is concerned the GDP, agricultural growth, per capita income, infrastructure, things are good, but I agree that we need to rectify certain issues in the party," he said.
However, he said the erosion and degradation was rampant in every sphere of society, be it politics, media, judiciary or bureaucracy.
"Moral kahan down nahi hua?" he retorted when asked to comment on the moral degradation of his party politicians, particularly the recent incident in Karnataka Assembly. "Do you want to claim that moral of the media is very high. Having said that, I accept and admit that there have been issues," he said.
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