Modi attends BJP meeting as Joshi quits to avoid rift in party

Mumbai:  The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) star chief minister, Narendra Modi of Gujarat, arrived here yesterday to a grand welcome to attend the national executive meet, with his bete noire Sanjay Joshi quitting the panel.

The Bharatiya Janata Party, however, tried to downplay the apparent rift, restraining from making any comment on the development.

While party president Nitin Gadkari, with whom Modi had been upset, hailed Modi saying they will now work "shoulder to shoulder", BJP's former president Rajnath Singh refused to comment.

Modi, who was earlier not expected to come to Mumbai, arrived around 3.30 p.m. and also extended his stay to attend a rally scheduled for Friday evening.

Joshi offered his resignation early yesterday, and it was accepted by Gadkari, who was responsible for bringing him back to the party and making him an invitee to the executive.

Gadkari said that Joshi had resigned to avoid "any conflicts in the party". He added that Joshi quit "on his own so that there are no differences within the party over his presence".

Joshi had offered to resign after Modi reportedly decided to keep off the meet due to Joshi's inclusion in the national executive.

Modi had also kept away from the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections as Joshi was given a key post in managing the campaigning for the party.

Joshi earlier had to resign from the post of party general secretary in 2005 after a clip of him showing him in a compromising position with a woman was circulated.

Gadkari later reinstated Joshi in the party, a move which caused a rift between the party president and Modi. The Gujarat chief minister had also kept away from the party's national executive meeting in Delhi.

Earlier, Gadkari said: "I talked to Modi, he said he will come to the national executive in Mumbai... We will work together shoulder to shoulder for the party."

With Joshi's exit, expectations are that the equation between Modi and the party leadership will be smoother.

The internal conflict in the party has become increasingly sharp with leaders in many of its stronghold states unhappy with the central leadership.

In Karnataka, former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa is at war with incumbent Sadanand Gowda, who was earlier his confidante. The two have now fallen apart.

In Rajasthan, also a BJP stronghold, another former chief minister, Vasundhara Raje, is pitted against Gulabchand Kataria, a party leader.