Uma's letter angers RSS, BJP top brass

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Bharatiya Janata Party are understood to have taken a serious view of firebrand leader Uma Bharati's latest salvo against senior Sangh functionary Suresh Soni and top party leaders, creating uncertainties about her early return as Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister or appointment to any key organizational post.

In a hard-hitting letter sent to RSS Chief K S Sudarshan and BJP President L K Advani, Bharati has accused Soni, Sangh Joint General Secretary, of "gross prejudice" against her and scuttling her chances of making a comeback to state politics.

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In the four-page letter, leaked selectively to the media, Bharati also made a scathing attack on party Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and General Secretary Sanjay Joshi charging them with being "used" by Soni who is in charge of party affairs. She is understood to have even given details of party meetings to substantiate her charge. RSS Spokesman Ram Madhav acknowledged the receipt of her letter while BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar said "we haven't seen the letter, how can I comment".

"I have nothing to say", Naidu, who is in Patna, told Press Trust of India when asked to react on the letter. Sangh sources said the RSS top brass has taken a "serious note" both of the "charges and the language" of the letter. In the party too, while Advani alone was pushing the case for Bharati's rehabilitation, her attack on Naidu and Joshi has given fresh ammo to her known detractors including Pramod Mahajan and Sushma Swaraj.