Shimla, Aug 21 - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani Friday said the decision to expel party veteran Jaswant Singh for his controversial book praising Mohammed Ali Jinnah was 'painful but inevitable'.

'Advaniji said that Jaswant Singh episode has been painful, but it was inevitable,' senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said, while briefing reporters on Advani's address to the party's three-day introspection meet that ended here Friday.

Jaswant Singh, who has held defence, finance and external affairs portfolios in the BJP-led governments, was Wednesday expelled from the party for his book 'Jinnah: India, Partition, Independence,' in which he has praised Pakistan founder Jinnah.

Singh in his book has said that Jinnah was 'demonised' in India, while part of the blame for the country's partition should also go to the country's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.