Jaitley-Rajnath clash widens rift within BJP

New Delhi: Internal strife continues to trouble the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The party's key election strategist, its General Secretary Arun Jaitley continues to make headlines over a reported rift between him and party President Rajnath Singh.

On Saturday he arrived late for the party's IT vision document launch. The launch was important because the BJP is trying to project itself as an IT-savvy political party.

Jaitley, who gave the party's Central Election Committee meeting a miss on Friday, arrived 10 minutes late at Saturday's launch - this even as BJP's prime ministerial candidate L K Advani and Rajnath Singh were already there. The function had begun when Jailey walked in.

The General Secretary is reportedly miffed over Rajnath Singh's move to appoint Sudhanshu Mittal as in-charge of the poll campaign in Assam and joint in-charge of campaign in the northeast.

However, Mittal and senior BJP leader Venkiah Naidu say there are no differences with Jaitley.

"Arun Jaitley is a senior leader. I am not aware of any differences. It is all in the imagination. I have a history of 30 years in party. I have worked in various positions in the party. I am working in Assam and I don't think that Arun ji has said anything of this kind," said Mittal.

"There is no trouble in the NDA. Jaitley was there in the morning, afternoon and evening and attended all meetings. He had an issue which will be sorted out. There is no fight over who will be the leader. Advani is our undisputed leader. He is our trump card and there is no one of comparision in our opponents," added Venkaiah Naidu.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi also stressed that there was "no problem" between Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitley.

Claiming that the NDA would come to power with a clear majority, he said that although BJP and BJD had just split, there were others which had joined the party like Chautala and Ajit Singh.

Joshi said while the BJP was tasting success in various state elections, the Congress was losing everywhere.

On the Third Front, Joshi quipped "it is already third."

The BJP leader also said that construction of the Ram temple would be included in the party's manifesto.