RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat prevailed upon BJP veteran lK Advani on Tuesday and successfully convinced him to withdraw his resignation from three party panels. In turn, Advani wrested some of his authority, with the RSS leadership promising to respect his primacy in the BJP's decision-making process.
The RSS also assured the veteran leader that it would properly address his concerns about the functioning of the party. Peeved at the "current functioning of the party," Advani had on Monday resigned from the BJP's Parliamentary Board, Central Election Committee and the National Executive. Sources close to the BJP veteran claim his decision had little to do with Narendra Modi's nomination as chief of the party's campaign committee for the lok Sabha polls.
"He was unhappy with the activities of certain BJP leaders, having RSS links, who were working overtime to undermine his stature and authority in the party," a senior BJP leader told The Pioneer.
Advani held these RSS leaders responsible for creating an unfavourable situation for him within the BJP. Sources said Advani saw the hand of these elements behind the recent developments in Goa after the BJP ignored his demand for announcement of an Election Management Committee under former president Nitin Gadkari along with the Modi-headed National Campaign Committee.
When it became clear that Advani's suggestion for the management committee would not see the light of day at the Goa meet, his loyalists unsuccessfully tried to convince BJP chief Rajnath Singh to hold back the announcement on the Modi-led panel. Sources claimed even senior leaders like Sushma Swaraj had made clear to the BJP chief her objections about making such a big announcement in the absence of Advani and without taking him on board.
"The RSS leadership has assured Advani that he will be on board when the party picks up its Prime Ministerial candidate. In future, things will not play out the way they did in Goa," sources close to Advani said.
Top BJP leaders kept persuading Advani throughout Tuesday to reconsider his decision of quitting the BJP body. Apparently, it was the RSS chief's call in the afternoon that gave the BJP its first sigh of relief in the last 24 hours. Sources claimed former BJP chief Nitin Gadkari played a crucial role in convincing Bhagwat to intervene and end the crisis.
It is for the first time in the recent past, (the last being three years ago when he got involved in negotiations with BJP leaders on Gadkari's elevation as party chief), that Bhagwat has directly intervened in the BJP's affairs.
BJP chief Rajnath Singh, who returned from Jaipur around 5 pm, drove straight from the airport to Advani's Prithviraj Road residence. Within minutes, top BJP leaders held a joint Press conference at Advani's house to announce the truce.
"On behalf of the party, Rajnath Singh assured Advani that his concerns about the functioning of the party would be properly addressed and the President will discuss the modalities of addressing these concerns with Advani," reads a statement issued by the BJP.
Sources claimed Bhagwat had spoken to Singh earlier in the day and insisted that the BJP should make a categorical announcement that issues flagged by Advani will be addressed within the party.
Singh told reporters: "Today afternoon, RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat spoke to Advani and asked him to respect the BJP Parliamentary Board decision (rejecting his resignation) and continue to guide the party in national interest. Advani has decided to accept Bhagwat's advice."
Senior BJP leaders like Nitin Gadkari, Sushma Swaraj, Jaswant Singh, SS Ahluwalia, Shahnawaz Hussain, Uma Bharti, Balbir Punj and others were present when Singh read out the statement.
The veteran's resignation had put the NDA in a deep crisis. After Advani resigned, NDA allies had threatened to reconsider there affiliation to the alliance in which Advani had little say. Tuesday's development also reinforced that the existence of the alliance remains as equal a concern for the BJP as expansion of its own base was.