Advani stays, George says why he should

Hours later, the fight within got enlarged into a bigger battle between the NDA and the Sangh Parivar with George Fernandes’s unexpected entry into the fray.

In a statement clearly aimed at bolstering Advani’s position vis a vis the Sangh, the NDA convenor—who had gone to Nagpur ostensibly to broker peace after the Jinnah storm—urged the RSS to ‘‘confine itself to its socio-cultural activities’’ and slammed it for ‘‘arrogating to itself a political role.’’

Asserting that the coming Bihar poll was the ‘‘immediate challenge’’ before the NDA, Fernandes added: ‘‘A strong NDA and a united and cohesive BJP, fully and unequivocally wedded to the NDA’s agenda is the crying need of the hour. It is unfortunate that the BJP seems to be facing internal problems at a time when the people were once again looking to the NDA with hope and expectation.’’

The NDA, he further said, must ‘‘constantly reaffirm its secular ideology and superior and truly democratic value system’’ which alone would help the BJP-led coalition defeat the ‘‘Congress-Communist combine.’’

Fernandes’s statement gave a wholly new twist to the crisis that has gripped the Parivar, a crisis that is far from over despite the apparent truce struck late last night that gave Advani a reprieve.

The RSS was quick to react to Fernandes. RSS spokesman Ram Madhav said, ‘‘It is advisable for people to refrain from interfering in the Sangh’s internal matters and that of its ideological fraternity. Thanks for the unsolicited advice, but we don’t need it.’’

The RSS, deeply perturbed at Advani’s act of ‘‘defiance’’ in refusing to step down even after being roundly indicted for his ‘‘ideological deviations,’’ was clearly rattled by Fernandes’s open attack.

The statement, RSS sources said, indicated that the NDA convenor was the new Sudheendra Kulkarni in the BJP chief’s camp, who—like Kulkarni—was egging on Advani to move away from the the Parivar and strike an independent path.

The timing of Fernandes’s statement appeared to be aimed at sending a message not just to the RSS but also to the BJP rank and file: choose pragmatic politics epitomised by the NDA to win power or risk political isolation by remaining an appendage of the Sangh.

The emphasis on the Bihar elections was also significant. Kulkarni, too, in his resignation statement had noted: ‘‘I believe that the top priority for everyone in the party now must be to make the BJP, along with its allies in the NDA, capable of winning the upcoming elections in Bihar and, thereafter, roundly defeating the Congress party whenever parliamentary elections are held.’’

The similar sentiments expressed by Fernandes and Kulkarni indicated that Advani was set to use the Bihar polls as a weapon in his battle against the RSS. The message delivered by Fernandes is that any move to remove Advani or clip his wings at this stage would jeopardise the BJP’s leadership of the NDA and its success at the hustings.

Earlier in the day, addressing a press conference this afternoon, BJP spokesperson Sushma Swaraj insisted that RSS leaders, who met Vajpayee, Advani, and other BJP office-bearers separately yesterday, had only stressed the need for ‘‘ideological firmness’’ and that the conduct and behaviour of BJP leaders should not be out of tune with Sangh ideology.

‘‘Not even once was Advani told to step down and there is no confusion or controversy in the Parivar or party in this regard,’’ Swaraj said. Asked why no BJP leader had denied reports that the RSS had asked the BJP chief to step down, Swaraj said RSS spokesman Ram Madhav was supposed to make a statement on the matter last night (but did not.)

Ram Madhav, on his part, was far less categorical than Swaraj. ‘‘Whatever message had to be given has been given. Now it is for him to decide,’’ he said, refusing to either confirm or deny whether Advani was asked to step down.