Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi/Bhopal: Putting a full stop on the speculations of rivalry between him and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minster Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday sought to clear the air by saying there were 'no differences' between him and Narendra Modi.
Yesterday, a political storm was stirred with the news of BJP's poll panel chief's name missing from the posters put up for MP CM's Jan Aashirwad Yatra.
BJP stalwarts like LK Advani, party chief Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj and Atal Bihari Vajpayee were featured in the poster.
"There are no differences between me and Modi ji. He is a respected leader of our party and is like my elder brother. I have great respect for him and under his guidance BJP will definitely win the upcoming General Elections," Shivraj Singh Chouhan said to reporters.
Chouhan, who is seeking a third term in office, is expected to cover 224 Assembly constituencies and travel a distance of 8,000 km, as per state BJP president Narendra Singh Tomar.
The state BJP president had earlier told reporters that the yatra should be seen as a prelude to the 'Maha Kumbh' of BJP workers scheduled to be held on September 25.
Chouhan was addressing roadshows held in Malwa region from Ujjain to Dhar districts as part of the 50-day 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra', which was launched yesterday ahead of the forthcoming state elections due this year-end.
Chouhan listed a number of welfare schemes, especially the 'Laadli-Laxmi Yojna' and the sale of wheat, rice and salt at highly subsidised rate, which are being implemented by his government.
However, this is not the first time that leaders within the party have shown their disagreement on making Narendra Modi as BJP's PM candidate.
A day after Chouhan hailed LK Advani as BJP's top leader, another voice of support for the party patriarch came today when Shatrughan Sinha described him as the "most seasoned and mature" leader who must be at the "helm of affairs".
Sinha also appeared to lend his support to murmurs of discontent in the party over projection of the Gujarat Chief Minister as possible prime ministerial candidate saying if it was done through Parliamentary Board "it would be great".
Endorsing Nobel laureate Amartya Sen's views against Narendra Modi, Janata Dal (United) also said today that the BJP leader was not fit to be prime minister and his arrival on the national stage has resulted in shifting of focus from burning issues to non-issues.
Earlier, the 17-year-old alliance between Bharatiya Janata Party and JD(U) broke due to a crisis which erupted due to the BJP's decision to choose Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to head its election campaign.
Meanwhile reiterating party patriarch Atal Bihari Vajpayee's words, Shatrughan Sinha said, "Vajpayee ji used to say that rivals were no problem but the problem for the party was from within."
With PTI inputs
First Published: Tuesday, July 23, 2013, 20:09
