Advani nips talk of Rajya Sabha route, says will fight Lok Sabha polls
NEW DELHI : BJP patriarch LK Advani on Sunday put the lid on speculation that he might be moved to the Rajya Sabha, making it clear that he will contest the coming Lok Sabha polls. The delay in announcement of BJP’s list of Rajya Sabha candidates had sparked a buzz in party circles that the RSS was keen to push some of the veterans to the Upper House.
“I have not said anything (about going to Rajya Sabha) and if somebody offers me this suggestion I will think about it. But it is natural, I think, that if I had to consider it, I would have done it earlier,” Advani told reporters after unfurling the national flag at his residence.
Asked if he would contest the Lok Sabha elections, he said, “This is what is in my mind.” Advani represents Gandhinagar from Gujarat in the Lok Sabha.
On President Pranab Mukherjee’s Republic Day Eve speech, Advani said it was “significant” that Mukherjee found it imperative to speak against “populist anarchy” in his address to the nation. The BJP leader, however, declined to comment any further.
“I will only say that on today’s occasion I will not comment on anybody even though it is significant, more so as the President found it necessary to comment on this,” he said. Advani also agreed with Mukherjee’s appeal against a fractured mandate and said he hoped that the country would have a government with a complete majority after elections.
