Tuesday, October 18 2005 16:11 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) high command ruled out change of guard in Madhya Pradesh, two Ministers and an MLA, considered close to former Chief Minister Uma Bharati, today (Oct 18, 2005) met former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and are understood to have demanded her return to the top post.

Ministers Gauri Shankar Shejwar and Arun Mishra, who is also Vajpayee's nephew and state Legislature Party Secretary, Dhyanendra Singh, met Vajpayee for about 30 minutes, the sources said.

Shejwar and Mishra, who represent loyalists of the former Chief Minister, are also expected to meet party President L K Advani later in the day and hand over a memorandum claimed to be containing the signatures of over 120 MLAs and demanding change of leadership in the state.

Sources close to Bharati said the memorandum was not submitted to the party leadership yesterday on account of the lunar eclipse which was considered 'inauspicious.'

A meeting of senior party leaders here yesterday, chaired by Advani, had ruled out any leadership change in the state and disapproved public announcement of any signature campaign.

State unit President Shivraj Singh Chauhan had also held separate meetings with the dissident legislators.