The Congress on Wednesday suggested that Jaswant Singh has been handed out poetic justice by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which expelled him today in the wake of his controversial book, projecting Mohammad Ali Jinnah as greater than Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. "We had rejected the contents of the book. The BJP has rejected the author himself," All India Congress Committee general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said.
Greeting people of Pakistan on the occasion of its National Day, United States President Barack Obama on Tuesday pledged to remain a partner of all Pakistanis who 'seek to build a future of peace and prosperity.'
"It was Veer Savarkar who first mooted the idea of a two-nation theory which was later adopted by Muhammad Ali Jinnah," Singh told reporters.
Call it a setback to Narendra Modi. The Gujarat High Court on Friday set aside the Gujarat government's order to ban Jaswant Singh's book on M A Jinnah.
Jaswant Singh maintained that he never expected his book to cause such a furore. When asked why he was expelled without being given a chance to explain his stand, Singh said,"This question should now be addressed to the party, which decided to expel me. I am a member of Parliament and have more then one hunered books to my credit and hence I would like to be remembered both as a parliamentarian and an author."
The Bharatiya Janata Party's 'Chintan Baithak' or assessment-cum introspection exercise will begin in Shimla on Wednesday.
BJP president Nitin Gadkari said, "The party has not yet taken any decision on Uma Bharati's return. The issue is still being discussed." A party leader said the party's decision may be possible after the elections to the Bihar assembly are over.
Former Union minister Jaswant Singh on Thursday formally returned to the Bharatiya Janata Party, ten months after he was summarily expelled for praising Pakistan founder M A Jinnah in his book.Singh was welcomed back to the BJP by senior leader L K Advani and party president Nitin Gadkari. Gadkari had met Jaswant in New Delhi last week before leaving for the party national executive in Patna to discuss his entry into the party.
'Besides Ayodhya, the BJP lost in nine other constituencies with a Ramayana imprint; it tasted success only in Thrissur.' 'In Rameswaram, K Navaskani of the Indian Union Muslim League won with a 44% voteshare in a 84% Hindu constituency.' 'In the 21 seats in the Ayodhya and Varanasi regions, both crucial to the Hindutva project, the BJP won just 7.' 'It won just 3 out of 12 seats around Modi's constituency,' points out Krishna Prasad.
Union Minister of State for External Affairs Sashi Tharoor on Sunday said that it was not proper to ban the book authored by Jaswant Singh for his references on Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Talking to reporters, Tharoor said that in a democratic country like India, people have the right and freedom to speak and write. "If a person is not interested in reading the book, let him not read it," he said.
Member of Rajya Sabha from Bharatiya Janata Party, on returning after attending they party's three-day long Chintan Baithak in Shimla, told rediff.com that he was shocked to read former Union minister and recently expelled leader Jaswant Singh's controversial book on Mohammad Ali Jinnah and the way "he degraded the iron man of India Sardar Vallabh bhai Patel."
Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Monday took a dig at BJP president L K Advani saying "she divided Pakistan and never changed her stand like some big leaders".
Advani's brief address to the party workers had no references to the four-day leadership crisis in the party triggered by his resignation.
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Uma Bharti has said she will file a petition in the displinary committee.
Jaswant Singh's book has raised a fresh controversy on who was responsible for the Partition of India. Some think it was Mohammed Ali Jinnah; others say Jawharlal Nehru/Sardar Patel. The truth is that the seeds for Partition were sown at least 80 before Partition actually happened.
The meeting assumes significance in the wake of RSS criticism of Advani over his controversial remarks about Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah during his recent Pakistan visit.
It was also said that the resolution asked the people to see Advani's remarks about Jinnah in its entire context.
Advani said Golwalkar, who took over the reins of the RSS after the death of its founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, firmly believed that rule on the basis of religion is not possible in India and RSS does not approve of such a system.
'...It is important for you to take a stand.' 'It is a sin to remain silent when the basic structure of the Constitution is being attacked.'
'There is a song that fits my father. It is from the Dev Anand film Hum Dono, which goes Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya...'
Brig Ejaz Shah has been strongly criticised by Benazir and her supporters for the security failure and they have demanded his removal and arrest. When he was in the ISI, he used to be the handling officer of Osama bin Laden and Mulla Omar
The former prime minister said President Musharraf has been doling out concessions to India.
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Advani has announced his resignation from the party chief's position in December.
Bharatiya Janata Party president Lal Kishenchand Advani on Wednesday made it clear that the concept of 'Akhand Bharat' (undivided\nIndia) was no more relevant.
A BJP worker's anguished open letter to party chief L K Advani.
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