L.K. Advani did not wish to remember his stepping down as Leader of Opposition on Friday as the end of era.
But the irony was that, for a man known as the ‘Hinduvta’ face of BJP, he had to bow out to the whims of the RSS.
The man, who won respect from the rank and file of the party as a hardliner, as the one who took the party strength in the Lok Sabha from just two in 1984 to an impressive 182 in 1999, was no longer anyone’s favourite.
Even as the post of Prime Minister eluded him, Advani had three main regrets in life – one was the way the Babri Masjid came down capping his movement for a Ram temple in its place and robbing him of his moderate image.
The second was none of the men and women he picked to make the BJP what it is today stood by him — when he wanted to set right his and the party’s image (following its drubbing in the 2004 polls).
After his “Jinnah was a secularist” remark in Pakistan, he was left alone, forced to resign as BJP President on December 31, 2005.
{{/usCountry}}After his “Jinnah was a secularist” remark in Pakistan, he was left alone, forced to resign as BJP President on December 31, 2005.
{{/usCountry}}Lastly, as he reconciled with the RSS, his regret was not so much about his failure to become Prime Minister. But it was his inability to groom a second-in command in the mould of what he was to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
These drawbacks, together with the mad ambition among the second-rung leaders, crushed his spirit and the BJP, according to party officials.
In fact, before he was projected as PM candidate, Advani had almost decided to call it a day when he turned 81. But the RSS and his supporters decided at the height of the Gujarat polls in December 2007 that he must be named for the top post.
But the manner in which BJP brass fought each other left him helpless, and when the results came, his hopes were dashed.
Advani had in 1995 projected Vajpayee as PM candidate despite his popularity after the Ayodhya movement.
Advani thought Vajpayee was best suited for taking the party’s cause. His strategy worked and a year later BJP came to power but the government lasted for just 13 days. But, the jinx was broken in 1998 and again in 1999.
Advani pioneered the yatras — undertaking a series of journeys on a mini-bus that he called ‘Rath’ (chariot). But this year’s poll debacle brought forth rebellion even from those close to him like Jaswant Singh.