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This Article is From Oct 25, 2012

RSS stands by Nitin Gadkari, but seeks arm's length from second term

New Delhi: The BJP and its parent body, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh or RSS, are standing by their man. With a lot of fine print.

The RSS said today that it has "no connection" to a second term for BJP president Nitin Gadkari, whose business empire, as of today, is being searched for financial malpractices by two different ministries (Read).

Just a few weeks ago, the BJP amended its rules to allow Mr Gadkari an unprecedented second term - an extension that appears tenuous in the shadow of the allegations against him.

Yesterday, BJP parliamentarian Ram Jethmalani suggested that Mr Gadkari should surrender the proposed second term. MG Vaidya of the RSS said today that the organization has "no connection with a second term for Mr Gadkari" but also that Mr Jethmalani holds "no significant position" within the party.

Three years ago, the RSS went against senior party leaders like LK Advani in selecting Mr Gadakari to lead the BJP. Today, its defence appeared pale. "The RSS is not uncomfortable with the allegations against him (Gadkari)," said Mr Vaidya, a senior member of the RSS. "The charges against him are not serious," he added.

That is up for debate. The compendium of the allegations confronting Mr Gadkari includes ghost investors and tenebrous funding for Purti Power and Sugar Limited, which he helped set up in 2000 (Read). He resigned as its Chairman last year. The Income Tax Department is examining the source of funds of 18 different firms that bought equity in Purti; the Ministry of Corporate Affairs is looking at whether those firms misrepresented or concealed financial information.

What the BJP has to contend with is the likelihood of a tensile inquiry against Mr Gadkari as states like Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh decide who will form their next government. The party employed a series of recent scams that tumbled out from the government to attack the ruling Congress of unrelenting corruption. Similar charges against its top man leave it more than winded.

Sources in the RSS say Mr Gadkari has been asked discreetly to explain the charges against him, and that he has sought some time to furnish details.

They also say that while the BJP and its parent will offer support for Mr Gadkari, the centre of power may be shifting away from him. Yesterday, Mr Advani said that the charges against the president are about "standards of business and not misuse of power or corruption." But he also stressed that the party and its leaders must be held to exacting standards of probity.

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