Cracking the whip, the BJP today suspended Ram Jethmalani with immediate effect for daring the party to act against him on the CBI chief's appointment issue, saying it was gross indiscpline.
A defiant Jethmalani, an eminent lawyer and Rajya Sabha MP, who had recently demanded party chief Nitin Gadkari's resignation in the wake of charges of alleged dubious funding of the latter's Purti Group, said, "nobody has the guts to take action against me".
Jethmalani invited the BJP wrath after attacking the party for criticising the appointment of new CBI Director Ranjit Sinha.
Addressing a press conference here, BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said Jethmalani had opposed the letter written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh by Sushma Swaraj, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Arun Jaitley, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, asking him to keep the CBI Director's appointment in abeyance.
"Jethmalani's remarks are meant to help the Congress," Hussain said adding that it was an act of "gross indiscipline". Hussain said Jethmalani opposing the Swaraj-Jaitley letter to PM and his remarks today in Mumbai that no action can be taken against him has been viewed very seriously.
"BJP President Nitin Gadkari has viewed his remarks and today's statement very seriously," and decided to suspend him from the party with immediate effect, he said.
The BJP Parliamentary Board will meet here tomorrow at 4.30 PM to take forward the suspension process since Jethmalani is a sitting MP.
In Mumbai, Jethmalani said many in the party shared his views, but "few had the capacity" to express their viewsopenly.
He, however, clarified that his views on Sinha'sappointment were his own and not of the BJP, where "I am asmall person."
"If there is any action taken against me, I willwelcome it but I don't think anyone has the guts to take anyaction against me," he told reporters on the sidelines of alaunching of a book written by a city-based journalist.
Yesterday, Jethmalani had attacked the party forcriticising the appointment of new CBI Director and said thegovernment's decision has "averted national calamity".
On if there were more people in the party having asimilar stand, Jethmalani said, "I am sure there are more. Iam 100 per cent sure that there are many more, many more butall don't have the capacity to speak the truth publicly andopenly."
In Delhi, Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi saidJethmalani's suspension was an "internal matter of the BJP"
Actor-turned MP from Patna Sahib, Shatrughan Sinha hasjoined Jethmalani and Yashwant Sinha in demanding Gadkari'sresignation saying the issue raised by them should be lookedat seriously.
"The issue raised by them (Jethmalani and YashwantSinha) should be looked at seriously," Sinha had toldreporters yesterday in Patna replying to a question whether heagreed with the other two BJP leaders' demand for Gadkari'sresignation.