LK Advani's veiled words target Narendra Modi again
For him, Modi the 'able administrator' who will be the 'next PM', is actually an 'events manager' who 'cannot be compared' with former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and who certainly isn't Advani's protege.
Words can be like a knife. But when it comes to Lal Krishna Advani, they can become a double-edged sword wielded by a political patriarch. On Saturday, Advani did exactly that while filing his nomination from Gandhinagar for the Lok Sabha elections.
Words of praise for Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi were, in reality, Advani's way of snubbing the Gujarat chief minister. For him, Modi the "able administrator" who will be the "next PM", is actually an "events manager" who "cannot be compared" with former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and who certainly isn't Advani's protege. In one go, Advani said it all: somewhere deep down, he's still sulking for not being allowed to have a go at the top job he had been aspiring for.
There was indeed the much-needed show of unity in Gandhinagar: Modi accompanied Advani for filing the nomination; in fact, he handed over the papers on behalf of Advani to the returning officer. It all looked fascinating and BJP supporters cheered as 86-year-old Advani and a much younger Modi looked on. But then there were Advani's words, veiled, yet calibrated to target Modi all over again.
Advani, who nurtured BJP from the scratch, had been unhappy with Modi's elevation in the party - first as the campaign committee chief and then as the PM nominee. Advani skipped the party's conclave in Goa and even resigned from all party positions in June last year to vent his unhappiness over Modi. After several parleys, he was made to withdraw the resignation and the party brass tried to straighten things out to ease the perceived tension between the two leaders. But it stayed on, as was clear when Advani reportedly refused to contest from Gandhinagar in Gujarat and insisted that he should contest from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh instead. There were murmurs that Advani was not comfortable to contest from Modi's turf. However, Advani relented after several top party leaders, including Modi, reached out to him. It was then that Gandhinagar got ready to welcome the veteran once again.
Advani, who is seeking his sixth term in the Lok Sabha from the Gandhinagar, was all praise for party's PM nominee on Saturday which was returned in equal measure as Modi exhorted party workers to go full throttle to ensure the patriarch's victory by a massive margin.
Comparison
Possibly, Modi's stance pleased Advani. But even then he could not let go the opportunity to remind that Modi has yet to reach the stature and "class" of BJP stalwarts.
"I will not call Narendrabhai my protege, but I have never seen a more brilliant and efficient events manager than him. And this very event management capacity he has brought to governance also. That has made him more suitable for the assignment the party has given to him," Advani said.
And then came out his comparison barb. "I would not compare, certainly not to Atalji. Atalji was a class by himself. The main ideologue of the party was Deen Dayal Upadhyaya and the person to implement it in governance was Atalji," Advani said.
Like any disciplined member of a regimented party he denied that there was any controversy over his selection of constituency. "Our friends from Madhya Pradesh wanted me to contest from Bhopal also. But I have never intended not contesting from Gandhinagar," he said.
So, he said he was "rejoiced" to file papers from Gandhinagar, pointing out that his relations with Gujarat began from the days after Partition. But even as he recounted his relations with the state, Advani's words gave us the glimpse of his mind one more time. The real Advani is yet to come to terms with the possibility that Modi could be heading to 7 Race Course Road while the BJP patriarch will remain a former deputy PM.