Embattled Chongqing Communist Party chief Bo Xilai has returned to the public eye after a conspicuous three-day absence from a series of official events amid a continuing political storm that brought down his top protege.
Bo, a 'princeling' - his father was a communist revolutionary veteran - had been considered a leading contender for a spot in the party's innermost power circle in the leadership shake-up later this year. But on Friday he appeared to distance himself from his right-hand man, former Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun, who is the subject of rumours about a graft investigation.
Bo, meeting a visiting Vietnamese Communist Party official in Chonqging, recited a Chinese literary classic, Love of the Lotus Flower, and stressed the importance of party cadres staying clean even in a corrupt environment, according to party mouthpiece Chongqing Daily yesterday.
Political analysts said Bo might have been implicated in the scandal, and might be replaced by a close ally of President Hu Jintao .
Wang, a deputy mayor in Chongqing who rose to national fame for spearheading Bo's maverick crusade against organised crime, was believed to have been placed under investigation after his mysterious visit to the United States consulate in Chengdu , Sichuan, two weeks ago, a possible attempt to seek asylum. The internet rumour mills then went into overdrive with speculation about a possible fallout between Bo and Wang.
Several political sources said Hunan party chief Zhou Qiang had been tipped to take over Bo's post. Zhou is a key member of the Tuanpai - those with a background in the Communist Youth League, Hu's power base.