Rajasthan BJP suspends 11 rebel leaders, including four ministers for Six years
Jaipur, Nov 23: The Rajasthan BJP has suspended 11 rebel leaders, including four ministers, for six years over their decision to contest elections against party candidates, a party spokesperson said Friday.
Four ministers, Surendra Goyal (Jaitaran), Hem Singh Bhadana (Thanagazi), Rajkumar Rinwa (Ratangarh) and Dhan Singh Rawat (Banswara), who are contesting as independent candidates, are among those who were suspended on Thursday night after they did not withdraw nomination papers.
The party termed the action "expulsion" for six years.
Thursday was the last day for withdrawal of nomination papers for the Rajasthan assembly polls.
The other suspended leaders include sitting MLAs Anita Katara (Sagwara) and Kishna Ram Nai (Sridungargarh) and former MLAs Radheshyam Ganganagar, Laxminarayan, among others.
"They have been expelled from the party for contesting against the party's official candidates," the BJP spokesperson said here.
The rebels were dismissive of the party action.
"I am a five-time MLA and have a good hold on voters in my constituency. Despite that the party dropped me this time and gave the ticket to a candidate who had lost the election of ward panch. I had resigned as a party member and as minister soon after I was dropped by the party and therefore the party's action against me does not hold any value," Goyal said.
Goyal had won from the Jaitaran seat with a margin of 34,874 votes in the 2013 assembly elections.
He said he was banking on the work he did in his constituency and expressed confidence that he will win this year too.
Rawat, who is contesting from Banswara constituency, said the party's decision meant "nothing" to him.
"Why would I care about the party's action? I do not care, I am contesting the elections and will win," he said.
Union minister and senior BJP leader Arjun Ram Meghwal said the disciplinary action against the rebel candidates was routine.
The Rajasthan BJP managed to convince some of the rebel candidates, including sitting MLAs Gyan Dev Ahuja (Ramgarh) and Bhawani Singh Rajawat (Ladpura), to withdraw their nomination papers on Thursday.
Ahuja, a Hindu hardliner, and Rajwat had filed their nomination papers as independent candidates from Sanganer and Ladpura constituencies.
The party has fielded former Congress MP Ijyaraj Singh's wife Kalpna Devi from Ladpura this year.
Apart from the BJP, the Congress is also facing a challenge from the rebels on several seats.
Former Union minister Mahadev Singh Khandela (Khandela), former Rajasthan minister Babulal Nagar (Dudu), former MLA Nathuram Sinodia (Kishangarh), among others, turned rebel after being denied tickets and will be contesting the polls as independent candidates.
A total of 2,294 candidates, including 189 female candidates, are in the fray for the December 7 polls for the 200-member Rajasthan Assembly.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
