BJP-Advani showdown brews after patriarch’s no to RS berth

mangaloretoday.com

New Delhi, Jan 27: Another showdown seems to be brewing between L.K. Advani and leaders running the BJP. The BJP leadership wants octogenarian leaders Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi not to contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections and to voluntarily accept Rajya Sabha berths instead. But both leaders have put their foot down, leaving BJP managers in a bind.

 

The India Today Group has learnt that RSS mandarins in Nagpur have communicated to BJP president Rajnath Singh that the party should not give tickets to leaders above the age of 75. However, after having got embroiled in two major showdowns with Advani over the elevation of Narendra Modi, the BJP president is treading with caution and is trying to avoid another ugly confrontation with the party stalwart.

Advani fought the 2009 elections from Gandhinagar in Gujarat, while Joshi fought from the Varanasi seat in Uttar Pradesh. Both these cities are being discussed widely in BJP circles as possible seats for Narendra Modi to contest the Lok Sabha elections from. Four senior leaders the India Today Group spoke to confirmed independently that the party wants to move Advani and Joshi to the Rajya Sabha.

Advani himself has publicly ruled out the possibility of giving up his Lok Sabha seat. Speaking to journalists on Republic Day after unfurling the tricolour at his residence, Advani said, "I have not said anything (about going to Rajya Sabha) and if somebody offers me this suggestion, I will think about it. But it is natural, I think, that if I had to consider it I would have done it earlier." Asked if he would fight the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the 86-year-old leader said, "This is what is in my mind."

Advani’s close aides at 30, Prithviraj Road are livid with what they describe as games being played by BJP leaders. They claim that the matter has not been discussed in any official party forum in the presence of Advani and no leader has even taken up this issue with Advani. Advani’s aides complain that the decision making process is being systematically undermined by the current crop of BJP leaders with delicate decisions being leaked to the media to build public pressure even before they are discussed within the party.

Despite Advani putting his foot down, BJP leaders say that efforts are still on to persuade the patriarch to relinquish his seat voluntarily. However, a Plan B is also being worked out in case Advani and Joshi refuse to relent. Vadodra in Gujarat and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh are the two other seats that are being looked at closely for Modi to contest from.