Janata Dal (U) may leave coalition.
CHENNAI: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Lal Krishna Advani’s resignation from three party positions may hasten the exit of Janata Dal (United) from the National Democratic Alliance and culminate in the virtual split of the coalition.
Advani’s resignation comes on the heels of the elevation of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as the BJP’s election campaign chief at its national conference in Goa. Advani had skipped the conference, reportedly to protest against nomination of Modi.
Though Modi had tweeted that he had talked to Advani after the party anointed him as the head of its election campaign and got his blessings, the events unfolded the following day have clearly demonstrated that other senior leaders were also not happy with the move.
Three other leaders, Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Singha and Uma Bharti, had joined Advani in skipping party’s the national conference in Goa.
While efforts are being made to persuade Advani to withdraw his resignation from the party’s national executive, parliamentary board and the election committee, he has so far refused to change his mind. He is reportedly hurt by a protest march organized by Modi’s supporters in front of his house during the weekend.
“Most leaders of ours are now concerned just with their personal agendas,” Advani wrote in his resignation letter to party president Rajnath Singh.
Even before the BJP announced Modi’s promotion, its biggest ally, Janata Dal (United), had opposed Modi’s elevation repeatedly. The BJP and JD (U) are running a coalition government in Bihar, a state with 40 parliamentary seats.
The recent loss in a by-election in Bihar had somewhat toned down the rhetoric of JD (U) leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for a few days. But the resignation of Advani has now given him a big opportunity to leave the alliance.
While JD (U) president Sharad Yadav said that it will let the people know of its stand very soon and that the NDA is currently in ventilator, a comment by another party leader that it is tough to remain part of the NDA after Advani’s resignation assumes significance. Yadav termed Advani’s decision as detrimental to the NDA’s health.
The recent events also show that there is very little that JD (U) could do to prevent Modi’s ascent. One should not be surprised if the party breaks away from the NDA in the coming days.