After the Bharatiya Janata Party's poor showing in the Gujarat civic elections, posters of the party's former national general secretary resurfaced in parts of the state on Wednesday. The posters carried a picture of Joshi alongside slogans asking for him to be brought back and "save the BJP". The posters came up in chief minister Anandiben Patel's constituency Ghatlodia, and party president Amit Shah's constituency of Naranoura-Thaltej as well.
Party leaders asked the police to investigate the matter, but they still have no leads. The Times of India reported that similar posters appeared before the 2012 Lok Sabha polls and 2012 Assembly elections as well. State BJP spokesperson IK Jadeja said the party had no comments on the issue.
Joshi had earlier been implicated in a sex scandal and did not return to mainstream politics even after receiving a clean chit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Joshi have reportedly had a rivalry for decades now, which some say is the reason he has been sidelined in the party.
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