It is always lonely at the top. But not any more for Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. The BJP is getting ready to market the combination of Vikas Purush (Vajpayee) and Lauh Purush (L K Advani) in the Assembly elections and the the Lok Sabha elections next year.While BJP members may still shout slogans like ‘‘Phir ek baari, Atal Behari,’’ some new ones, underlining the co-option of Advani, would be commissioned by the party. The posters too would carry the photographs of both.BJP president M Venkaiah Naidu, who had stated not too long ago that the party would contest the next elections on the plank of ‘‘Vajpayee ka naam aur Vajpayee ka kaaam’’, changed his tune today. He said, ‘‘The focus of our election campaign will be a combination of both the Vikas (development) Purush and Lauh (iron) Purush.’’The BJP decision is a big leap forward by the Sangh Parivar to ultimately propel Advani in to prime ministership at an appropriate time. The Sangh Parivar has the analogy of Ram and Lakshman ready in place to deify the projection of both along side. After all, it was Sarsanghchalak K S Sudarshan who had at a function here in early April addressed Vajpayee as “Sanghjanpriay” (dear to Sangh members) and Advani as “Laskhman ke saman” (like Lakshman).The Parivar knows too well that it would face no problem marketing the “Ram-Lakshman ki jodi” to its own constituency. It would, in fact, go too well with Ayodhya and Ramjanmabhoomi. The only source of trouble could be the NDA allies. With most of them divided, weakened and marginalised over the time, the Parivar may encounter no resistance to Advani consolidating his position.Hardpressed for a logical explanation to this sudden shift in the party-line, Naidu could only say: ‘‘He (Advani) is now the Deputy Prime Minister. We want to show that the Lauh Purush is solidly behind the Vikas Purush.’’A meeting of senior leaders is scheduled to be held later this month to put the party seal on the move. The meeting, billed as a ‘‘brain-storming session,’’ will be attended by about 100 senior leaders.
