Time for ‘tantrum throwing’ Advani to retire from politics?

In twists and turns marking the top-level rumblings in BJP, LK Advani finally decided to contest from Gandhinagar in Gujarat after the party gave in and allowed him the choice of the constituency in the Lok Sabha elections.

The 86-year-old leader made the announcement shortly after party president Rajnath Singh issued a statement saying that it was for Advani to choose whether to contest from Gandhinagar or Bhopal, seeking to end a 24-hour drama that exposed the simmering tensions between him and Narendra Modi.

LK Advani. Reuters

While Advani's supporters have sided with him, his critics say that it is time he retired. Also, some say that the issue created over which constituency to contest from was completely uncalled for.

Sudheendra Kulkarni, Advani's long time aide, defended the BJP leader during a debate on CNN-IBN. "Advaniji is in good health, he has been the architect of the BJP since its inception. He is still the tallest leader of the BJP. There are people who think that he should retire. But if he wants to be in active politics it is his decision. The party should respect his wishes," Kulkarni said.

Writer and academic Madhu Kishwar was of the opinion, "Left to himself Advaniji would have never created such drama. His stature is shrinking. It is the people around him who are creating this. There is a coterie around Advaniji who are misguiding him in a way that they are diminishing him. This is creating mayhem."

This is not the first time that rifts in the BJP have become public. During the BJP meet in Goa where Narendra Modi was anointed the head of the BJP Lok Sabha campaign,  Advani had cited ill health as an excuse to not attend the meet. There had been reports of a rift between Advani and Narendra Modi then also, with a section of the party openly seeking a larger role for the Gujarat CM.

So is it now Modi vs Advani?

"It is not about Modi vs Advani. It is a question of Advaniji choosing where to contest from. I have been in BJP long enough to know that such a choice is left to top leaders. The party president has made a certain statement today. Had the same thing been done last night they this situation would not have happened today," said Kulkarni.

"India wants a stable government. All the polls show that BJP is ahead. It is in India's and BJP's interest that the party stays united. Modi is the PM candidate, no one is questioning this. That is not the debate today at all," he said.

Meanwhile Kishwar questioned Advani's move of keeping the BJP on hold to decide on his constituency. "Why is the tallest leader undermining the party's decision and making a spectacle of himself? This is not the kind of image he should be leaving of himself," she said.

Kishwar went on to criticise Advani for the Babri Masjid demolition. "The party was built by thousands of workers among whom Modi was one of the prime workers, so lets not say only Advanji built the party. The same Advaniji demolished the Babri Masjid which scarred the party permanently. I am not denying the positive contribution he made, but he is not the only person who worked for the party," she said.

Advani's critics say it is time for him to take the role of an advisor and take a break from day to day politics. But Kulkarni differed: "Lets leave the decision of retirement to Advaniji himself".

He also criticised the BJP saying the country was getting negative signals from them. "The rank and file of the BJP want Modi to be not just be a PM candidate, but they are working so that BJP wins. It is the collective responsibility of the top leaders of the BJP too. The signals coming out of the BJP are not very positive. The party used to be admired even by its critics for the discipline of its workers and the unity of the organisation. For the past few years this has been undermined. They must put their house in order."

However, Kishwar vehemently defending Modi said, "Modi was only demonised. He was not defended even by the BJP leaders. He is the worst victim of 2002 riots. He connected with the people of India. It is his work that connects him to the people."

When asked what would be the way forward for Advani from now, Kulkarni said, "The top most priority today is to ensure that his party comes back to power. He is one of those rare leaders who is not driven by personal ambition. He is driven by ambition for the party. Of course he is troubled to the extent the party should remain united."