Mumbai, June 21: On the BJP’s debating table tomorrow, there will certainly be a lot of spice, thanks to Narendra Modi. But the masala will be missing at its dinner table because as many as 100 of its 200 delegates are, quite literally, diabetic.

That has, however, not prevented the BJP from booking the five-star Hotel Renaissance in Powai on the outskirts of Mumbai for its delegates to retire into for a hard day’s night.

A total of 100 rooms have been booked in the hotel set amid greenery and overlooking a lake, and a cheque for Rs 13 lakh handed in. Very important persons — A.B. Vajpayee, L.K. Advani, M.M. Joshi — are set to get a room to themselves while lesser mortals will be put up on a two to a room basis. The whole exercise is estimated to cost Rs 17 lakh.

BJP general secretary Pramod Mahajan today voiced displeasure at being asked to explain the BJP’s “five-star culture” ahead of such a serious atman chintan (soul search) session. Fielding persistent queries on “indulgence”, he said the allegations were baseless.

“These charges don’t make sense. We have given the hotel a cheque of Rs 13 lakh. And the executive is being held here because everybody can live, eat and discuss things in peace and comfort. Nobody will be given additional facilities like laundry and free long distance calls. Barring VIPs, everyone will have to share rooms.’’

Waving away rumours that a cook from Thane had been sent for to whip up Vajpayee’s favourite puranpoli, he said: “There is no such arrangement for the sweet dish. Anyway, half of the delegates are diabetic. For them there will be separate food counters.”

But he was quick to add that puranpoli was not an indulgence because “my wife says it just costs about Rs 78 a plate. That’s not so much.”

The five-star dwelling apart, little else about the executive will be cushy. There will be the awkward issue of the BJP’s poll defeat and its failed campaign centring on Vajpayee’s larger-than-life persona and Advani’s feel-good slogan. There is also the thorny issue of Modi’s survival as Gujarat chief minister.

Though BJP chief Venkaiah Naidu earlier and Mahajan today said the debate was over, sources said it would come up “most naturally”. Modi is scheduled to land in Mumbai at 11 am tomorrow, in time for the start of the executive.

Hard pressed to explain the flip-flop on Modi, Mahajan iterated: “Modi’s removal will not be discussed in the deliberations. The Gujarat issue is over and done with. We have discussed it in yesterday’s parliamentary board meeting and the party president has said that the matter is over as of now. Whatever was decided at the meeting had the full consent of Vajpayee.”

Though “Aagami disha” (future roadmap) is the theme of the executive, ghosts from the past are not likely to be buried silently. Vajpayee, aided by disgruntled MLAs and MPs in Gujarat, is likely to demand a consensus on Modi.

There is also the BJP’s ally Shiv Sena, which has already blamed it for going soft on “core issues” and said its disinvestment policy was a “disaster”. Sena chief Bal Thackeray has also said that the BJP paid at the hustings for aborting its Hindutva principle.

BJP leaders agree that the meeting will be anything but smooth. A former BJP minister in Maharashtra said: “Sirf rehne-khane mein aaram hogi, meeting toh kathin rahega.’’

Although Modi will be landing in Mumbai only tomorrow, three of the other executive members — Rajendrasinh Rana, Suresh Gandhi and Kashiram Rana — are already there. Former chief minister Keshubhai Patel is scheduled to take a late-night flight.

There are also reports that Modi-baiters, including Purshottam Solanki, are planning to camp in Mumbai to raise the go-Modi issue on the sidelines of the meet. But they could not be confirmed.

A Modi loyalist said no one but national exceutive members would be allowed to enter the meet venue.