With the BJP in Bihar having sought disciplinary action against its leader and MP Shatrughan Sinha for his elaborate praise for chief minister Nitish Kumar, the actor-politician’s constituency on Thursday saw an eruption of posters targeting him.
Hundreds of posters carrying Mr Sinha’s large photographs were found pasted on walls and tree trunks in several areas in Patna Saheb, his Lok Sabha constituency near Patna. “laapata” (missing) was how the posters described him, referring to his alleged long absence from his constituency since getting elected in 2009. Although these posters said they were printed by the “Youth Congress and ordinary voters” of Patna Saheb, speculation was rife about the BJP having circulated them. Both the BJP and the Congress in Bihar chose silence on the issue.
BJP leaders are worried that Mr Sinha’s recent meeting with chief minister and JD(U) stalwart Nitish Kumar and then his public description of Mr Kumar as “prime ministerial material” will have a demoralising effect on the BJP workers across Bihar. With Mr Kumar on Wednesday having castigated the BJP and threatened to “cut the BJP to size”, the saffron party’s state unit felt doubly irritated by Mr Sinha’s comments and awaited suitable action from the Central leadership.
“If not disciplinary action, we hope at least a suitable public reprimand to be issued against Sinha by the Central leadership. The state unit has already conveyed its hurt feelings on Sinha’s statements and actions to leaders in Delhi,” said a senior BJP leader and former minister in Bihar.