BJP warhorse L.K. Advani’s “avoidable” comparison of Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s development model with Narendra Modi’s Gujarat has set off a new debate in BJP circles ahead of its crucial national executive meet.
Many see it as Mr Advani’s “masterstroke” to provoke Mr Modi’s loyalists to openly declare support for his name as PM candidate.
Mr Advani, a PM aspirant himself, virtually anointed Mr Chouhan with the legacy of former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, which almost pits Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan directly in the race with Mr Modi as PM candidate.
A section within the Bhartiya Janata Party feels that since 2014 is possibly Mr Advani’s last chance to realise his PM dreams, his projection of the MP chief minister is a desperate attempt to scuttle Mr Modi’s chances.
While there was no official BJP reaction to Mr Advani’s remarks in Gwalior on Saturday, Union minister Manish Tewari tweeted Sunday that there was virtually a “civil war” in the BJP over the PM candidacy issue.