FILE photo: BJP lawmaker Shatrughan Sinha
Shatrughan Sinha, after a high hit rate in irking his party, has dared the BJP to punish him, with a warning on Twitter of a strike back.
As Bihar heads for elections, Mr Sinha, an MP from the state capital of Patna, has shown considerable dedication to consolidating his reputation as Agent Provocateur by publicly criticizing important party decisions and exchanging frequent and lush plaudits with Nitish Kumar, who is running for a third consecutive term as Chief Minister.
Mr Sinha has said that his
one-on-one interaction with BJP rivals like Mr Kumar and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is not out of line, and that praise for political opponents should not be misread by his party as a preface to switching sides.
BJP sources told NDTV yesterday that though Mr Sinha is guilty of indiscipline,
penalising him ahead of the elections would draw further notice to the former Bollywood actor whose jibes against his party have been guaranteeing him attention. That assessment was formed after Mr Sinha said that the BJP has erred in not naming the presumptive Chief Minister of the alliance it leads in Bihar. Mr Sinha also declared his choice (and it was not from within his party) - Ram Vilas Paswan, the leader of the regional LJP.