The power struggle has intensified within the BJP between Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s supporters and detractors, especially after the opinion polls predicting advantage for the saffron party if the Mr Modi is projected as the prime mnisterial candidate.
These opinion polls have led to formation of a new power equation within the party. BJP parliamentary party chairman L.K. Advani, who himself is eyeing for the PM candidate post, is reportedly warming up to former party chief Nitin Gadkari.
Mr Advani,who is fighting the decisive battle in his own party at the fag end of his political career has reportedly suggested to BJP chief Rajnath Singh that Mr Gadkari should head the election management committee for the coming Assembly polls, which will see a straight fight between the Congress and the BJP.
Mr Advani had earlier refused to go by the RSS script of giving a second term to Mr Gadkari, leaving the RSS fuming. Sources disclosed the BJP chief himself wants Mr Gadkari to head the election management committee with the calculation of keeping the RSS top brass in good homour.
Sources disclosed Mr Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Ananth Kumar and M.M. Joshi are not in favour of Mr Modi being projected as the prime ministerial candidate despite growing clamour within the party cadre to project the Gujarat CM for the top post.
It could be mentioned here that Sushma Swaraj, considered close to Mr Advani, had Wednesday said that Mr Advani cannot be ruled out as a possible PM candidate of the BJP.
The RSS, meanwhile, does not want to join the power game and may reveal its card at a later stage. The current picture in the BJP is that all senior leaders are playing games in the power struggle at a time when it is yet to be seen whether or not Mr Modi is projected as the PM candidate.
It could be recalled here that Mr Modi had recently called on Mr Advani and described the meeting as “wonderful.” He had also met Mr Gadkari.
Mr Gadkari’s relations with Mr Modi had strained after the latter did not campaign in Assembly polls last year.