A day after senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh claimed Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and BJP president Rajnath Singh had betrayed his trust, Raje set out to prove a point by calling for a show of strength of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Barmer district, where the senior BJP leader will contest as an independent.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. AFP
Raje also accompanied Congress rebel and fresh recruit into the BJP, Sonaram Chowdhury, when he filed his nomination papers on Tuesday.
The Barmer rally will be held later this afternoon.
On Monday, Jaswant Singh hit out at Raje saying he had helped her rise in politics but she had now turned against him. It is widely reported that Vasundhara recommended Jat leader Sonaram's name for Barmer. Sonaram lost to a BJP candidate in the just-concluded Rajasthan Assembly elections.
Singh had said on Monday that when Vajpayee, L K Advani and he were travelling together some years back, Advani had asked who would be a suitable candidate for the chief ministership of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. He had then recommended Vasundhara Raje's name, he said.
Raje would not only want to be vindicated but also knows she has a tough contest in Barmer. While she won the Assembly elections convincingly, Jaswant Singh is said to have the support of several MLAs in the Barmer-Jaisalmer region of the desert state. He is also playing the caste card, presenting his humiliation as that of the Rajput community who feel slighted by Raje, who has given tickets to seven Jat candidates for the Lok Sabha elections.
He is also said to have the support of the sizeable Muslim population in Barmer.
The Rajasthan chief minister already held an 'Aam Sabha' in Barmer on Monday in support of Sonaram, even as Jaswant Singh's held a rally in the area on the same day.
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