Mahajan thinks state BJP unit is his 'personal property': Nagpur MP

Bharatiya Janata Party Lok Sabha member Banwarilal Purohit on Thursday accused BJP General Secretary Pramod Mahajan of treating the party's Maharashtra unit as his ''personal property".

Purohit said he would welcome a show-cause notice for alleged indiscipline in criticising the Shiv Sena-BJP's government's decision to allot coal mines to Nippon Denro's Bhadrawati power project.

Reacting sharply to Mahajan's threat of expulsion, Purohit said the notice would give him an opportunity to explain his position. He was confident that the BJP leadership would ignore Mahajan and endorse his stand on the issue.

Purohit further charged Mahajan with being hand-in-glove with the Mittals, promoters of the Bhadrawati project, saying as defence minister (in the BJP government that lasted 13 days at the Centre) he overruled the ministry's earlier objection against allotting coal mines near the ordnance factory at Chandrapur.

He said he could not allow the "gifting" of mines worth Rs 220 billion to the Mittals. He had apprised party leaders including L K Advani and A B Vajpayee of this "loot" of the country's mineral resources.

Alleging that Mahajan was working against the party's interests in the state, he said the BJP general secretary now wants the government to put issues like a separate Vidarbha state and sales tax rebate in cold storage. Mahajan had forgotten that the party had made certain commitments on these issues, said Purohit who joined the BJP six years ago after being a Congress MP for two terms. He had invited the wrath of the Congress leadership by participating in the kar seva for the temple at Ayodhya.

Mahajan says Purohit has raked up the issue because of his marginalisation in "Nagpur politics".

Ironically, the Sangh Parivar has issued conflicting signals on the allotment of mines. The Swadeshi Jagran Manch, a Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh subsidiary, has endorsed Purohit's stand and demanded that the deal be kept in abeyance for a full public debate on the issue.

UNI