The more the Opposition ratcheted up its pressure on the BJP and Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje on the Lalit Modi controversy, the more firmly, it seemed, they were digging in their heels. A day after her signature on the affidavit in support of Modi’s UK immigration application renewed demands for her dismissal, the party and the government came out in support of embattled Vasundhara Raje. Although there was still no word from the Prime Minister — his political pronouncements today were on the anniversary of the Emergency and the value of a “democratic ethos” — Finance Minister Arun Jaitley landed in Delhi tonight and said that “nobody (in the government) is tainted.” Coming a day after Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s statement that there was no question of any resignation in the NDA, the statements from these two Ministers — the top two in the Cabinet — may have signalled a new resolve to weather the storm without giving in. The argument being worked on, sources said, was that Lalit Modi was equidistant from all sections of the political establishment cutting across parties; Raje’s recommendation was in her “purely personal” capacity; Sushma’s was because his wife had a cancer surgery; and the legal process against him wasn’t substantively affected by his absence from India. “Well, there is nobody who is tainted please,” Jaitley said shortly after his arrival in Delhi from the US. His Cabinet colleague and former BJP president M Venkaiah Naidu said the Narendra Modi government was working in the “most honest and transparent” manner and blamed some “unhappy people” for the outcry over Raje’s links to Lalit Modi. In Jaipur, Raje, too, came out of the cold to counter the TV studio storm: her office denied that she had been asked by the BJP to quit and accused the electronic media of airing “false news based on rumours”. Raje appeared cheerful while attending the passing-out parade at the Police Academy in the state capital, her only public event of the day. Sources close to Raje said that her attempts to get in touch with the BJP’s senior leadership, including party president Amit Shah, didn’t work out and that she was likely to head to New Delhi on Saturday to explain her position. Another faction in the party claimed that Raje had been given a 24-hour deadline by the BJP to explain her position. The CM’s office, meanwhile, maintained that Raje was slated to attend the Niti Ayog meeting in the national capital on Saturday for which she would reach Delhi a day in advance. Raje had earlier cited this meeting as the reason behind the cancellation of her official visit to London for an investors’ meet this month. This evening, Raje’s office issued a statement: “Some electronic channels are airing unsubstantiated news. These are absolutely baseless. Please check the veracity of such news items before airing them. False news based on rumours is being aired to tarnish the CM’s image and to hurt her politically.” Another statement added: “Rumours such as she would split the party and the party might be in trouble if asked to resign; she had the support of 110 MLAs; that the party sought her resignation but she refused to give it; that MLAs are gathering at her residence; that she or Rajendra Rathore are headed to New Delhi are all false and baseless. There is no truth in these rumours.” The second statement was directed at speculation triggered by the visit of a few legislators to her Civil Lines residence in Jaipur — the MLAs later said that they met Raje for “routine work” or “personal issues”. On Wednesday night, Health Minister Rathore had told reporters that the BJP unit and all legislators would stand by Raje which was interpreted as a signal from the local leadership that they would walk out with the CM if she was forced to resign. However, when contacted by The Indian Express, a large number of BJP legislators said that there was little possibility of any such walkout and that they were not approached by Raje or members from her camp to do so. Meanwhile, the Congress sought to keep up the pressure on Raje with Rajasthan Congress president Sachin Pilot producing Lalit Modi’s signed affidavit to the UK border agency in which he listed Raje as one of the three witnesses who supported his immigration claim. In Jaipur, former CM Ashok Gehlot said the BJP would have to decide on Raje’s future “sooner or later”. “It will be good if Raje gives in her papers on her own or else she might be forced to do so by the party. She should have had the courage to come forward and explain her position,” the Congress leader said.
