Vasundhara Raje resigns as leader of opposition in Rajasthan

Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje met senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani on Friday and submitted her resignation as leader of opposition in the state assembly. "Raje met Advani and tendered her resignation," said a BJP leader, who said he was privy to the development, but refused to be identified as the party had not made an official announcement. The issue has been a tricky one for the party with the leadership asking Raje two months ago in August to accept moral responsibility for the BJP's defeat in the Lok Sabha and the assembly polls in the state and step down.
The BJP was Friday tightlipped on the issue. Party vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the matter would be taken up in a parliamentary board meeting likely to begin Friday evening. "I have no knowledge about Raje resigning. I don't think she has so far. But the matter will be taken up in the meeting later," Naqvi said. The BJP has convened the parliamentary board meeting to discuss the Raje issue and the causes for the poor performance in the assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh, Naqvi said.