"Mohan Bhagwat did not talk of scrapping quota," Union Minister Arun Jaitley said.
Finance minister Arun Jaitley today told NDTV that if the BJP gets the numbers to form a government in the state, the chief minister could be someone from the backward castes.
"The Chief Minister could belong to backward castes, since the BJP has always supported them," said Mr Jaitley, who is currently campaigning in Bihar.
The comment comes as the party struggles to contain the furore over RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's remark -- that he favours a review of the country's reservation policy.
The RSS being the ideological mentor of the BJP, Mr Bhagwat's comment has become the rallying point for BJP's rivals in the state that has a chunk of the Dalit and backward caste population.
The BJP has partnered with three regional parties in Bihar who have support among the backward castes that benefit from affirmative action and form a significant portion of the voters. So even top BJP leaders are being seen as scurrying to control damage.
But even after a clarification given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Mumbai - that there will be "no rethink" on reservations - Mr Bhagwat was quoted by media saying he was not against reservation, but believed quota has not benefitted the people it was meant for.
Today, PM Modi, who is also campaigning in Bihar,
cleared the air on reservation again, saying, "Rights given by Babasaheb Ambedkar for the socially backward classes will never be taken away by my government."
Clarifying Mr Bhagwat's comment, Mr Jaitley said, "Mr Bhagwat did not talk of scrapping quota. Even on Dusshera he said he was in favour of social justice".