Raje will not be replaced: Rajnath Singh

Rajnath Singh, president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, has ruled out any change in the leadership in Rajasthan because of the ongoing violent agitation between the Gujjars and Meenas.

While Gujjars are demanding Schedule Tribe status, the Meenas -- who constitute 10 percent of the electorate -- have opposed sharing their privileges with the Gujjars.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje has been directed by the party high command to sort out the matter at the earliest so that peace is restored in the state. The state has faced heavy economic losses because tourist traffic -- the highest in the country -- has been badly affected.

"There is no question of change in the state leadership. Our first priority is to restore peace," Singh told newsmen after a meeting at the residence of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Saturday morning.

The meeting was held after L K Advani and Jaswant Singh met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss the violence and the manner in which it was spreading to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.

The issue of Gujjar violence and its fallout is likely to be discussed at the National Executive of the party on June 15 and 16 which has been shifted from Jaipur to Delhi because of the prevailing circumstances in the state.

Sachin Pilot, Member of Parliament from Dausa, where the violence started had a meeting with National Security Advisor M K Narayanan on Friday evening and on Saturday he met Sonia Gandhi.

Pilot was given Z plus security following the possibility of a threat to his life from other communities.