BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha meets Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia and AAP leader Ashutosh at Mr Kejriwal's residence
seems keen to enhance his status as chief troll-bait for his party, the ruling BJP. In a move that's certain to add to his rich repository of run-ins with his bosses, Mr Sinha met this evening with one of the BJP's biggest rivals, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
"It's not a crime to meet Delhi chief minister. I came here to talk about Delhi's development," Mr Sinha said after the meeting at Mr Kejriwal's residence which lasted for nearly an hour. It was attended by his political advisors Manish Sisodia and Ashutosh.
A few days ago, Mr Sinha, who represents Patna in the Lok Sabha, said he wasn't sure if he would be expelled from his party.
His moves since then have not been placatory. He continues to
speak warmly of another BJP irritant, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar; yesterday, he was at flagrant cross-purposes with his party as he expressed his support for the opposition Congress over the suspension of 25 of its MPs for unruly behaviour.
Mr Sinha appears to be picking his friends with the deliberate intent of chafing the BJP. In Bihar, the party is counting on a campaign led by the PM to toss out Nitish Kumar from office in September's state election. This has not inhibited Mr Sinha, 69, from either meeting with the Chief Minister, or
extolling him as a leader of considerable accomplishment.In Delhi, Mr Kejriwal is battling the union government for what he describes as its extreme over-reach in matters of administration. He has thrown his weight behind Mr Kumar's campaign in Bihar to back him against the BJP. Mr Sinha's visit to the Delhi Chief Minister will be interpreted as an expression of interest in that informal alliance.
Mr Sinha said yesterday that
fraternizing with political rivals is not an offence. "Our dashing dynamic Prime Minister attended (Congress leader) Digvijaya Singh's son's wedding", he underscored.