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Learn to take ‘no’ with a smile, Jaitley advises Jaswant
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 23
A day after veteran BJP leader Jaswant Singh went public with his anguish over being denied the party ticket for the Barmer Lok Sabha constituency, party colleague Arun Jaitley today counselled him on the way a politician should behave when denied his wish.

BJP leader Jaswant Singh at his farmhouse in Jodhpur on Sunday. PTI

“Silence is always dignified and more gracious,” he advised the senior leader, just a week after he criticised another senior colleague-Sushma Swaraj-for focusing on “marginal issues” when she tweeted against the induction of controversial leader B Sriramulu into the party in Karnataka.

“The leader may have to take ‘no’ as an answer to his desires,” Jaitley blogged today in response to Jaswant Singh’s criticism.

“Membership of a political party is a privilege. It is also an act of self-oppression where personal views and ambitions are subjected to the collective wisdom of the party. At times, the party may flood leaders with privileges and positions.

“On other occasions, the leader may have to take a ‘no’ as an answer to his desires. How does a politician or a leader react to such ‘no’? He must accept the decision with a smile. This becomes a test of his loyalty and discipline. Restraint and silence are always a preferred option. Over-reaction may prove be a transient storm in a tea cup. Silence is always dignified and more gracious,” Jaitley said.

Jaitley said: “A political party is built upon the support of millions of political workers who have sacrificed their time and energy without ever aspiring to hold an elected office. What does a politician do when after a successful political career the party is unable to accommodate him once? That is when his discipline and political loyalty are to be tested.”

This probably means that the party has decided to let Jaswant Singh do whatever he is planning (to contest as an Independent or carry on with his protests) though it will become clear when the veteran makes his next move public. Rajasthan CM Vasundhra Raje has also called a meeting to discuss the issue with party colleagues.

Reports emerging from Rajsathan suggest that Jaswant Singh has decided to contest from Barmer as an Independent. He has rejected speculations of having been approached by the Congress. He will file his nomination papers tomorrow. His son Manavendra Singh, an MLA in the Vasundhra Raje government is also threatening to follow in his father’s footsteps.

Jaswant Singh had yesterday made the most cutting remarks against the top leadership, asking the people to differentiate between the “fake” and “real” BJP. Senior leader Sushma Swaraj had also voiced support for Jaswant Singh, saying she had been saddened by the veteran being denied the party ticket. 

Jaswant to file papers as Independent

A sulking Jaswant Singh on Sunday dared his party, saying he will file his nomination papers tomorrow from Barmer as an Independent while asserting that he is "not a piece of furniture" to be "adjusted" after polls

Muthalik gets in, out

Public furore over the entry of Pramod Muthalik, the controversial chief of Sri Rama Sene linked with the attack on women at a pub in Mangalore in 2009, into the saffron fold on Sunday forced an embarrassed BJP to beat a hasty retreat barely a couple of hours after it welcomed the controversial leader with open arms