Liquor issue: BJP Bihar vice-president Rajeev Ranjan suspended for 6 yrs for indiscipline; leader claims he resigned

Patna: Mr Rajeev Ranjan, vice-president of the BJP's Bihar unit resigned from its primary membership on Friday. He alleged the State party leaders were against Dalits, OBCs and EBC.

However, State BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal said, “Mr Ranjan has been suspended from the party for six years for indiscipline as he met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday. Mr Ranjan has supported the CM on no compensation to the families of the hooch tragedy victims.”

Ranjan: 'Party programmes are confined to Patna only'

Talking to the FPJ, Mr Ranjan said, “I have resigned from the party I joined in 2015. Bihar BJP leaders are against the EBCs, OBCs and Dalits. Party programmes are confined to Patna only. The Bihar BJP has ignored the programmes and vision of Mr Narendra Modi and became a pocket organisation of a few individuals, exploiting the EBC, OBC and Dalit leaders and engaging them as flag-bearers. Even in Nalanda, the BJP has ignored its workers.”

He said, “If we start paying compensation to the families of hooch tragedy victims, there will be a demand for compensation to the families of murder and loot accused too. He demanded confiscation of property of liquor mafia and blamed the local Government machinery for its failure of prohibition in the State.

His statements were against the statements of the BJP leaders — Mr Sanjay Jaiswal and leader of the Opposition Sushil Kumar Modi — who are demanding compensation to the families of the hooch victims.

Ranjan was earlier warned against his anti-party stand

Mr Ranjan, a former chairman of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh State Electricity Boards was JD(U) MLA between 2010 and 2015. He was a class fellow of Mr Nitish Kumar in Bihar Engineering College and shares home district Nalanda and caste with Mr Kumar.

Bihar BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal in a communication to Mr Ranjan on Friday evening said the party vice-president was not toeing the party line and issuing statements against its policies and programs. Mr Ranjan was earlier warned against his anti-party stand statements but he ignored warnings. He is speaking against the basic principles of the party on liquor issue, considered indiscipline. He announced the Mr Rajeeb Ranjan was suspended with immediate effect from the primary membership, vice-president and the state media head of the BJP.

Claimed the resignation and later his suspension from the party is being attributed to the organisation bickering over control by two leaders — Mr Jaiswal and Mr Nityanand Rai — on the party. The two leaders are reportedly hostile to the dominance of Kurmis and traditional Vaishyas in the State unit.