Blow to BJP as Bihar party president resigns

Patna: The state BJP President C P Thakur resigned on Friday in protest against alleged irregularities in ticket distribution. He is also upset at the denial of a ticket to his son Vivek Thakur from Patna's Digha seat and a few of his loyalists. He has also refused to campaign for the party.

"I have resigned from the post of the state BJP president. I have sent my resignation to party president Nitin Gadkari this morning," Thakur said but refused to elaborate.

Party sources said Thakur decided to tender his resignation as he was unhappy with the decision to allot Digha Assembly seat in Patna to NDA ally JD(U) under the seat-sharing arrangement in the wake of the delimitation exercise.

Thakur had staked claim for the seat and wanted to field his son Vivek on a party ticket.

His resignation has dealt a blow to the ruling NDA in Bihar, where the first phase of assembly polls is scheduled on October 21, sources added.

BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister S.K.Modi said he was not aware of Thakur's resignation. "But one thing I admit at this stage - there has been discontent among party workers over the Digha seat, for which we have staked claim," he said.

"As the seat has now gone to the JD(U) share, we will try to assuage the ruffled feelings of our partymen," he said, adding BJP had yielded the seat under "compulsion" during discussions over seat-sharing.

Modi, however, said the bond between BJP and JD(U) was "very, very strong" and "We will continue to jointly campaign for candidates for securing a second term."

Later talking to reporters, Thakur said, "My sentiments have suffered a jolt ... I don't command respect in the party."

"What's the point in holding the post of state president when my simple request to secure party nomination for my son has not been fulfilled," Thakur said.

He, however, said he would continue to serve the party and work for bolstering its poll prospects. Asked whether he would campaign for BJP, Thakur replied "not at this stage".

Thakur said there were several other issues that compelled him to take the decision to quit from the party post. "Even I was not being consulted in the process of distribution of tickets and no due attention has been paid to solve my grievances," he said, adding he was even not being informed about meetings taking place at the behest of top leaders for election-related matters.

BJP sources said Thakur had earlier proposed that his son Vivek be allowed to contest from Bankipore and its sitting MLA Nitin Navin be given a party nomination from Digha but his proposal was not duly considered.

Top BJP leaders under pressure from Kumar allotted Digha seat to JD(U) and decided to field Navin from Bankipore, denying Thakur's claim for his son, they said.

Meanwhile, several state BJP leaders, including Navin, went to Thakur's residence seeking to mollify him at the behest of senior party leaders.

BJP spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain said, "I want to clarify that there have been several seats which JD(U) conceded for BJP during seat-sharing talks and there have been several other seats on which the party has to compromise in conformity with demands of the electoral alliance."

"We will try to persuade Thakur to take back his papers,"

Hussain, also member of BJP parliamentary board said.

With PTI inputs