Live: This NaMo, NaMo reminds me of Emergency, says Jaswant Singh

6:30 pm: Singh defends himself, says BJP central committee didn’t take decision on his candidature

Jaswant Singh told Times Now that he believed he was very much a winnable candidate for the party given he hailed from Barmer and if he had been given a ticket he could have proven his detractors wrong.

“It is impressive that Mr Jaitley should flaunt discipline but the decision for the Barmer seat was not taken by the central election committee,” Singh said.

He said that Sushma Swaraj was a member of the central election committee and had voiced her disappointment as well with the manner in which the candidate was chosen.

4:45 pm: Am not leaving the party, says Jaswant

Singh, who said he was responsible for Vasundhara Raje getting the post of Chief Minister in the state, also said there was no question of leaving the party.

“If the party wants to say goodbye to me then it is their decision. I have no intention of saying goodbye to it,” Singh said.

He also refused to speculate on the prospects of the BJP and Narendra Modi. But had some criticism for the prime ministerial candidate.

“Yeh jo Namo Namo, nirnaya lene ki prakriya shuru hui hai,yeh mujhe ‘75 ki yaad dilata hai,ismei ahankaar zyada hai (This Namo, Namo and the manner in which decisions are being taken reminds me of 1975 and it is a sign of arrogance), " Singh said.

4:30 pm:Singh criticises giving of ticket to ex-Congress leader 

Singh had no words of praise for the man who got the Barmer seat instead of him.

“He was part of the Congress barely two months ago and he then switched sides,” he said.

Singh said that he had taken the step he had taken on account of the manner in which the party had treated him and he regretted joining the BJP after being expelled in 2009.

4:20 pm: Singh says Rajnath will be expelling him for second time

Singh is addressing a press conference where he has reiterated that he has taken the step he has merely to uphold the principles of the BJP which the party was deviating from.  

“I cannot say anything about Advaniji…Only he can answer this question about his own condition,” Singh said.

Jaswant Singh said that he had been expelled the last time in 2009 by Rajnath Singh and it would perhaps be the second time he would be expelled by him.

“I had told Rajnath Singh that the attitude shown to me was not to be shown even to  a peon,” he said.

He said that on this occasion he had asked Rajnath Singh to give him the Barmer constituency and to announce it early to help him campaign but the party chief kept procastinating it.

The senior BJP leader said that he had held multiple portfolios in the Vajpayee government and he didn’t have to prove his capability to anyone.

Singh also reminisced about his time during the NDA government.

2:30 pm: Singh says party leadership acting like a dictatorship

Singh has said he had sought to represent Barmer for sentimental reasons and pointed out that the party leadership had denied it to him.

“I told the party leadership that the tenth time in Parliament I want to return from Barmer and they said all right. About a month ago I had told Advani and Rajnath Singh to announce the candidate in advance since it is a large territory,” he said.

Singh said he kept telling the party leadership to announce the candidate from Barmer but they kept pushing it off.

“When I found my name was not on the list, I called Rajnath Singh and he said he was on his way somewhere… When he spoke to me later he told me that the seat was not going to be given to me,”

“The ticket instead has been given to a Congress man who until two months ago was giving us gaalis,” Singh said.

Singh said the party leadership was running the party like a dictatorship.

“The decision by the party leaderships is a betrayal of all of you,” he said.

2:20 pm: Singh says he returned to party only to stick to principles

Jaswant Singh has gone after the BJP leadership criticising the manner in which he had been booted out of the party in 2009.

“I was told to go. Only Nitin Gadkari told me to return and I had my doubts. Then Advaniji told me to return,” he said.

Singh said that as he watched the party had continued on a downward slide even after he returned.

“The condition that prevails today means that there are leaders who are very separated from the principles of the BJP,” he said.

The senior leader said that the decisions of the leaders were affecting the party as well.

2:15 pm: Jaswant goes after Rajnath Singh and Vasundhara Raje

Jaswant Singh in a rally questioned how a man who lost the election just two months ago is now in place of him in BJP.

“If there is anything behind this decision it is your love. Who are the people who are going against your sentiments? " Singh said.

The BJP leader said that it was the second time that the BJP leadership was playing with the sentiments of the cadre.

He also criticised Vasundhara Raje who he said used to come to meet Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and Rajnath Singh.

“I am very sad that these two people have betrayed me. But they haven’t just betrayed me but the party and its principles as well,” he said.

1.00 pm: Contesting on principle and honour, says Jaswant after filing papers

Jaswant Singh who will be contesting the Barmer seat as an independent candidate, said that he was “contesting on principle, and honour - not just my honour, but the honour of all the people of Barmer” shortly after filing his papers at the District Magistrates office.

The senior BJP leader added that he would issue a statement  shortly. Although Singh will be contesting against the BJP, he has not resigned from the party as yet.

12.40 pm: Jaswant Singh files nomination as independent candidate

Jaswant Singh has made good his threat and filed his nomination from the Barmer seat as an independent candidate.

He is currently meeting the election officer in the seat, and is expected to address a gathering of his supporters shortly, where he will campaign as an independent candidate against the BJP.

10.50 am: Jaswant Singh to file nomination as independent today?

Asserting that he is “not a piece of furniture” to be “adjusted” after polls, senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh is expected to file his nomination papers from Barmer as an independent later today.

He has also made it clear that the party will have to suffer the consequences of internal strife coming to the fore ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

Back channel efforts were underway to bring him around, BJP sources said, but the veteran leader showed no signs of relenting.

Training his guns on BJP president Rajnath Singh who said the 76-year-old leader’s services will be utilised appropriately, Jaswant Singh retorted, “I am not a piece of furniture. The choice of the adjective ‘adjust’ itself is indicative of the mentality. You cannot adjust with principles and it is insulting”.

Slamming the BJP President’s remarks that the party will compensate him after the elections, Singh said, “I reject the thought and I reject the mentality behind it. Assumption is that they shall form the government and offer me some throttle. They can keep it for themselves”.

Jaswant Singh is, however, not resigning from the party yet and said he would consult his colleagues before taking that decision.

“Yes, I am filing my nomination papers tomorrow from Barmer. Independent or not, will depend on the party’s attitude,” he told PTI when asked whether he would contest despite denial of a ticket from his home constituency.

On the specific query about his resignation in the wake of his 48-hour deadline to the BJP, the party stalwart said, “I will speak about this after consulting my colleagues and others in Barmer and then take a decision.”

“If I am not emotional about my home and my political party, then what am I going to be emotional about…If the party decides to talk to me, they know my numbers and how I can be reached. Since I came here, nobody has tried to reach me,” he said today, putting the onus of preventing his exit on the BJP.

In indications that that there will be no reversal of decision, party leader Arun Jaitley said when a senior leader is not accommodated for some reasons, that is when his discipline and political loyalty are to be tested.

“He must accept the decision with a smile. This becomes a test of his loyalty and discipline. Restraint and silence are always a preferred option. Over-reaction may prove be a transient storm in a tea cup. Silence is always dignified and more gracious,” Jaitley said.