Reacting to the episode, BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy Monday said: 'His nomination to Rajya Sabha was coming to an end. I am sure he wants action against himself. He wants to become a martyr.

Shourie, however, told IANS: 'This is what great leaders like Rudy can think and all this is rubbish.'

The BJP has been in a crisis for the past few days since its senior leader and Lok Sabha MP Jaswant Singh was sacked from the party over a book written by him which said Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, had been over-demonised in India.

Shourie, already sidelined in the BJP, compared BJP President Rajnath Singh to 'Humpty Dumpty' in an interview telecast Monday. Commenting on the Jaswant Singh episode, Shourie asserted -- without naming anyone -- that there were certain people in the party who had brought about this situation, and 'these are the people who are hurting the party's interest'.