New Delhi:
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Rajnath Singh's remarks praising Narendra Modi in the U.S have upset many senior leaders within the BJP.
Speaking to reporters in New York, Mr Singh had said: "I have named Mr Modi as campaign head in view of his image, popularity and commitment to the party."
Stopping just short of naming Mr Modi as the prime ministerial candidate, the BJP chief said: "He is the one single leader with national appeal."
Sources say senior leaders LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Jaswant Singh are among those who have objected to their party president's comments, calling them "unwarranted", especially in the US.
Sources say Modi's critics in the party have pointed out that the appeal of leaders like Advani, a former deputy Prime Minister, and others who had won several Lok Sabha terms, cannot be underestimated.
Mr Singh's remarks may have put an early end to the BJP's show of unity after several leaders objected to Mr Modi's anointment as chief of the BJP's 2014 campaign.
Many like Mr Advani had skipped the party's leadership conclave in Goa recently, to protest against the Gujarat Chief Minister's elevation.
But last week, the BJP announced Team Modi 2014, a fleet of 20 committees to manage different aspects of the party's election campaign under Mr Modi. Its 15-member central election committee would include, apart from Mr Modi, leaders like Mr Advani, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.
Speaking to reporters in New York, Mr Singh had said: "I have named Mr Modi as campaign head in view of his image, popularity and commitment to the party."
Stopping just short of naming Mr Modi as the prime ministerial candidate, the BJP chief said: "He is the one single leader with national appeal."
Sources say senior leaders LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Jaswant Singh are among those who have objected to their party president's comments, calling them "unwarranted", especially in the US.
Sources say Modi's critics in the party have pointed out that the appeal of leaders like Advani, a former deputy Prime Minister, and others who had won several Lok Sabha terms, cannot be underestimated.
Mr Singh's remarks may have put an early end to the BJP's show of unity after several leaders objected to Mr Modi's anointment as chief of the BJP's 2014 campaign.
Many like Mr Advani had skipped the party's leadership conclave in Goa recently, to protest against the Gujarat Chief Minister's elevation.
But last week, the BJP announced Team Modi 2014, a fleet of 20 committees to manage different aspects of the party's election campaign under Mr Modi. Its 15-member central election committee would include, apart from Mr Modi, leaders like Mr Advani, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.
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