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Advani uses Atal's 'name' to garner support
Often seen as rivals, Vajpayee was singled out for praise by his deputy Advani, as the latter campaigned in Gujarat.
Often seen as rivals, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was singled out for praise by his deputy, L.K. Advani, as the latter campaigned in Gujarat.
Advani, contesting from the Gandhinagar constituency that includes parts of this city, said Vajpayee had grown from being a leader of the masses to an able administrator.
"In 1998 and 1999 people voted us to power and made Vajpayee prime minister. However, his popularity was not what it is today. He was popular before as a 'jan neta' (leader of masses)," he said at an election rally here late Friday that was also addressed by the prime minister.
"His current popularity reflects that he has grown to being a successful and able administrator."
"Under six years of Vajpayee's leadership, the country has moved from despondency to hope and a new confidence is seen," he said.
The biggest achievement of the Vajpayee-led government, said Advani contesting for the fourth time from Gandhinagar, was to bring back political stability in the country, which led to policy stability and resulted in all-round development.
Advani listed out the achievements of the Vajpayee government and claimed that their Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh in December by promising the people a better tomorrow.
Advani said Vajpayee's dream was to make India a superpower by year 2020.
"When we say India is shining, the opposition asks where is the shine with so much poverty. Our reply is that while problems remain, we are on the right path and we will make India a superpower by 2020.
"For us, being a superpower means that there won't be a single village in the country by 2020 where there are no pucca approach roads, no hospital for primary healthcare, no electricity connections," he said.
"If you talked like this 10 years ago, people would have discounted it as election talk. The advantage with Vajpayee is that people have seen his work, and when he talks of his dreams, people believe him."
Advani insisted that the general election starting Tuesday was being fought on the issue of development.
"It is the BJP's achievement that people are going to cast their votes in the name of development. We have strengthened the democratic set-up of this country.
"You have voted us to power in 1998 and 1999. Now I request you to give us a decisive vote, a clear mandate."
