BJP issues gag order on leaders, says only spokespersons allowed to speak on Bihar verdict

New Delhi: In the wake of facing backlashes from its own party leaders, Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday issued a whip to all its leaders and members stating that they are not allowed to make any statements on the Bihar election verdict, IBN quoted sources as saying.

Under fire for the poor show in 2015 Bihar Assembly Elections, the BJP leadership has also warned its leaders that a disciplinary action will be taken against those not following the directives.

A day after the Bihar verdict was out, sulking BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha claimed yesterday that the Bihar poll results could have been different for his party had he been projected as the chief ministerial candidate.

Sinha even met Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar to congratulate him on his impressive win in Bihar polls and said those responsible for BJP's humiliating defeat "should be taught a lesson".

Hitting out at BJP, party's Bihar ally HAM leader Jitan Ram Manjhi said statements of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat about a review of quotas and BJP president Amit Shah on celebratory firecrackers in Pakistan could be some of the possible reasons for NDA's debacle in the Assembly polls.

However, during a BJP Parliamentary Board meeting headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah in the national capital yesterday, senior party leader and Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that it was the formation of Mahagathbandhan, and not RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's quota remark, behind the poll debacle.  

Meanwhile, the BJP veteran leaders LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and two others raising a banner of revolt against the leadership of PM Narendra Modi in the wake of Bihar debacle, said that the party has been "emasculated" in the last one year and was being "forced to kow-tow to a handful".