New Delhi:
BJP president Rajnath Singh has phoned cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, whose discontent with the party has been voiced openly by his wife. The party chief allegedly urged Mr Sidhu not to make any major political decisions without careful consultation with the BJP.
Mr Sidhu is a member of the BJP and has represented Amritsar from Punjab in the Lok Sabha for three terms.
Yesterday, his wife Navjot Kaur said that he was being "suffocated by the system" and would not run for a fourth term.
"My husband will not contest parliamentary elections from Amritsar and a decision in this context was taken long back as the BJP ignored and sidelined him and his local team, which have been working in the constituency for more than a decade now," Mr Sidhu's wife told the Press Trust of India on Thursday.
In a recent overhaul of important posts ahead of the national election, Mr Sidhu was overlooked.
His wife said he was feeling "suffocated in the system despite three election wins, just because of his honesty and down-to-earth attitude."