Amritsar:
In an exclusive interview to NDTV, senior BJP leader, Arun Jaitley blamed the BJP's Karnataka unit for inducting controversial activist Pramod Muthalik, saying, "The state unit didn't realise that India has changed."
He said, "I heard about Muthalik when I was addressing a public meeting. I called my colleagues in Delhi from the dais itself and expressed personal concern." (
Controversial Pramod Muthalik: in and out of BJP in five hours)
He said, "Neither the party president nor any of us had any idea. The decision was taken by the state unit."
Mr Muthalik is infamously known for the attack by his group Sri Ram Sene on women in a Mangalore pub in 2009. He faces a number of charges.
In a strong indictment, Mr Jaitley said the state unit took a "wrong decision", but the BJP is a democratic party and is self corrective so the decision was immediately revoked.
Mr Jaitley also strongly defended the party's decision to deny a ticket to senior leader, Jaswant Singh, saying "I hope Jaswant Singh sees reason, and retracts his decision to contest."
Mr Singh, denied the ticket from the Barmer seat in Rajasthan, has threatened to fight the seat as an Independent. (
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Mr Jaitley said that the state units send recommendations to the party's central unit for consideration. In this case he said the Rajasthan unit felt that the candidate who was given the ticket had a better chance of winning than Jaswant Singh.
He described the decision as "regrettable", saying that he was as hurt as Sushma Swaraj by the decision, and insisting that no one in the party high command has any prejudice against Mr Singh. (
Hurt by party's decision to not give Jaswant Singh a ticket from Barmer: BJP leader Sushma Swaraj)
At the same time, he chastised Mr Singh, saying, "If the party tells you to work for the party, must learn to accept that. Lakhs of people work for the party without aspiring for a position."
He said, "There are any number of positions in which senior people can be accommodated."
As for whether Mr Singh might be expelled if he goes ahead with the decision to contest, he said "it is for the party president to decide whether or not to take action against him."