Kulkarni, man behind Advani, quits

With the RSS top brass meeting today in Surat to take stock of Advani’s recent ‘‘ideological deviations’’, the BJP chief had little choice but to accept Kulkarni’s resignation from all the posts he held, sources said.

If Advani had chosen to back rather than sack Kulkarni even after the disclosure of his last missive, his own job would be on the line and he would have been ‘‘isolated’’ within the party, BJP leaders privately maintained.

Kulkarni admitted as much today, saying that ‘‘a wholly unexpected situation has been created within my Party by the mysterious disclosure of the e-mail communication’’ he had sent to the party chief from Mumbai on June 24.

‘‘After assessing the situation comprehensively, and guided first and foremost by the interests of the Party, I have submitted my resignation from the post of secretary of the BJP and secretary to the Party President,’’ his statement said.

He has also resigned from membership of the BJP National Executive—a step demanded by several second-rung BJP leaders who did not want him around at the party’s crucial national executive meeting in Chennai later this month.

Ever since Advani’s controversial comments on Jinnah and related issues during his visit to Pakistan in May-June, the spotlight has been on Kulkarni. Even before Advani returned to India on June 6, several BJP leaders had begun to demand the sacking of Kulkarni, holding him responsible for their president’s ‘‘ill-advised’’ remarks in Pakistan.

Given Kulkarni’s CPI(M) background and his role in Vajpayee’s PMO—he was regarded responsible for Vajpayee’s attempt to woo the minorities in the 2004 elections which did not succeed and ended up alienating the ‘‘Hindu vote’’ as well—BJP insiders accused him of being a ‘‘Leftist mole’’ and wanted him to be made the scapegoat for Advani’s ‘‘transgressions’’ in Pakistan.

However, on his return Advani made it clear that he stood by his remarks (and by Kulkarni). Although Advani ultimately took back his resignation, sources close to him indicated that he would continue with his attempts to ‘‘recast’’ his own image and that of the BJP and not give in to pressure to sack Kulkarni.

Advani stuck to that line even after Kulkarni’s lengthy paper, rubbishing the concept of a ‘‘Hindu vote’’ and suggesting that the BJP reach out to India’s 15 crore Mulsims, was published in The Indian Express. But Kulkarni’s June 24 email was the ‘‘last straw’’ and he had to be ‘‘sacrificed’’—at least for the time being, sources said. There was no offical comment from the BJP, but a number of leaders privately described the move as ‘‘long overdue.’’

Significantly, in his statement today Kulkarni has once again attempted, albeit subtly, to pitch ‘‘Atalji and Advaniji’’ against the RSS. Without mentioning the RSS even once, Kulkarni said, ‘‘I am as convinced as ever that our Nation and our Party both need—now more than before—the vision, wisdom, superior understanding of issues, unparalleled experience and rare human qualties of selflessness and generosity that are embodied in their combined leadership.’’

He has also spoken of the upcoming Bihar elections as ‘‘top priority’’, underlining the importance of the BJP’s ties with allies in the NDA.

Since Advani did not accept Kulkarni’s offer of resignation even though he received it more than a week ago and was forced to accept it only after its ‘‘mysterious disclosure’’, sections in the party are apprehensive that his former aide’s ‘‘pernicious anti-RSS influence’’ could continue.

Kulkarni himself has kept that option open by stating ‘‘I am ready and willing to take up any work or responsibility that the Party President may wish to assign to me, now or in future.’’