Xinhua report confirms rumours around Chongqing murder
State media carries lengthy account of Wang Lijun's court case but his boss' name is left out
Details of disgraced Politburo member Bo Xilai's falling out with top aide Wang Lijun have emerged in a state media report on Wang's trial this week, fleshing out the circumstances of China's worst leadership crisis in decades.
The report confirmed rumours that after Wang brought up the involvement of Bo's wife in the murder of a British businessman, his boss gave him a tough dressing down and slapped him.
"Their conflict was brought into the open once [Bo] hit Wang," Xinhua quoted former Chongqing deputy police chief Guo Weiguo as telling the Chengdu Intermediate People's Court.
But the 6,000-word account of Wang's case it released yesterday conspicuously failed to mention Bo's name, in what analysts saw as a clumsy and deliberate attempt to protect the ousted Chongqing party chief and limit the political fallout of the scandal.
It is the first time, though, that authorities have indirectly implicated Bo in Heywood's death, although what effect it may have on his punishment remains unclear.
Wang, a former Chongqing deputy mayor and police chief, stood trial in Chengdu this week on four charges, including attempted defection and helping Bo's wife, Gu Kailai , cover up her involvement in Heywood's murder.