Tension within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Gujarat came to the fore today as Rivaba Jadeja, the incumbent BJP legislator from Jamnagar, was seen delivering a stern verbal reprimand to senior party members.

Among those on the receiving end were Poonam Maadam, a two-term Lok Sabha MP, and Bina Kothari, the city’s mayor. The incident unfolded during a party function held to commemorate the ‘Mari Mati, Maro Desh’ programme.

In a widely-circulated video, Jadeja could be seen addressing the city mayor and the Lok Sabha MP in an uneasy tone interlaced with frustration. Though the MP and the mayor refrained from engaging in arguments, it was apparent that Poonam Maadam attempted to defuse the situation with Rivaba Jadeja, the wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja.

What was the matter?

Talking to the media, Rivaba Jadeja stated that MP Poonam Maadam did not remove her shoes when she paid tribute to the martyrs, while Rivaba herself did. 

Throwing a jibe at Jadeja, Maadam said that even the president and the prime minister don't take off their footwear during these events and added “but some ignorant people become oversmart,” stated a news report. Jadeja did not like the comments, disliked the comments and burst on Maadam, saying that she needed to speak out for her self-respect.

Later, city BJP president Vimal Kagathara tried to placate the situation.

Rivaba, a first-time MLA, secured her position from the traditionally dominant urban seat of Jamnagar in the assembly elections held a few months ago.

The incident has garnered substantial attention as the video capturing Rivaba’s public outburst was circulated widely across social media platforms. 

In response, state BJP chief C R Paatil said that he would gather additional information in this matter. 

When questioned about the incident, mayor Bina Kothari said, “It’s an internal matter of the party, and I prefer not to comment further on this.”

Rivaba had joined the BJP in 2019. On the other hand, Poonam Maadam has been serving as a BJP MP since 2014. 

City mayor Kothari is another notable party figure locally, holding affiliations with RSS-linked organisations.

Source: IANS 

-Edited for style

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