'Unjustly targeted...': MP Jayant Sinha responds to BJP's show-cause notice
What's the story
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP and former Union Minister Jayant Sinha has responded to the party's show-cause notice to him, saying that he is being "unjustly targeted."
The BJP had issued the notice to Sinha after he allegedly did not vote during the fifth phase of polling on Monday.
The notice also claimed that Sinha did not participate in "organizational work and election campaigning."
In a two-page letter addressed to the BJP, Sinha has refuted all allegations against him.
Sinha's response
'Cast my vote through postal ballot'
Calling the allegations "wrong," Sinha said he was not invited to participate in the election campaign.
He added that he had cast his vote through postal ballot while traveling abroad for personal work.
"...Before leaving India, I sent my vote through the postal ballot process. Therefore, it is wrong of you to allege that I did not exercise my responsibility to vote," Sinha said in his letter.
Party politics
BJP's notice to Sinha for skipping campaigning
To recall, in the show-cause notice, the BJP alleged that Sinha hadn't participated in party activities since it named Manish Jaiswal as its candidate from the Sinha's seat—Jharkhand's Hazaribagh.
On March 2, Sinha in a post on X, requested BJP chief JP Nadda to "relieve" him of his electoral duties.
Hours later, the BJP announced Jaiswal as its candidate from Hazaribagh, which was once represented by Jayant's father and former Finance Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet, Yashwant Sinha.
MP's letter
Will continue to work on economic, governance issues: Sinha
In his letter, Sinha referenced his March 2 correspondence with the party, in which he communicated his decision to step back from electoral responsibilities "to focus on combating issues arising from global climate change."
"I will continue to work with the party on economic and governance issues...I have been blessed by the many opportunities provided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the BJP leadership. My sincerest gratitude to all," he added.
'Maintained political decorum'
No one contacted me: Sinha
Sinha also said his withdrawal from the contest had a "profound" reaction from thousands of Hazaribagh's constituents and party workers, but he "maintained political decorum and exercised restraint."
He mentioned that while he supported Jaiswal's candidacy, the party did not contact him for any electoral work.
"Not a single senior party official or MP/MLA from Jharkhand reached out to me after my announcement on March 2. I was not invited to any party events, rallies, or organizational meetings," he added.
Political shift
Sinha's son joins opposition
The development comes just days after Sinha's son, Aashir Sinha, reportedly joined the Congress following his father's denial of a ticket.
Notably, this is the first time since 1998 that no member of Yashwant's family is contesting the Hazaribagh elections.
Yashwant had an acrimonious fallout with the BJP in 2014 after being denied a ticket and has since joined the Trinamool Congress (TMC).