LK Advani picks Gandhinagar after all

New Delhi: After putting his party through the wringer, BJP leader LK Advani has agreed to run for Parliament from Gandhinagar in Gujarat, abandoning plans to relocate to Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.

The breakthrough came at sunset, and rescues the BJP and its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi from a drama that has tenanted the headlines since yesterday. (Read 10 latest developments)

Mr Modi was the first of many A-listers from his party to visit Mr Advani at his home, urging him to seek a sixth term from Gujarat.

The denouement was accelerated by the party's ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh or RSS, which pinged both Mr Advani and party president Rajnath Singh, urging them to consult each other and close the gap on any differences.

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"Advani-ji can choose to contest from Bhopal or Gandhinagar. It is his choice, it's wrong to say he has been sidelined," said Mr Singh soon after the RSS' signal.

Less than two hours later, Mr Advani said that he had been told "that the choice between the two parliamentary seats should be left to me." The 86-year-old added, "I am deeply touched by this gesture of my party colleagues."

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Sources say that the RSS  came down hard on the BJP for trying to force Gandhinagar on him when he had clearly stated in private that he preferred Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, a state governed by Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Last year, in his public and eventually unsuccessful campaign to stop the BJP from picking Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate, Mr Advani had pitched Mr Chouhan as an alternative.

For the BJP, Mr Advani's interest in Bhopal laid bare two political complexities: his continuing hostility to Mr Modi, who he once mentored, and his deepening alliance with Mr Chouhan. BJP sources said that earlier this week, Mr Advani told the party president that Mr Chouhan had invited him to contest the election from Bhopal.

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Mr Modi, 64, has governed Gujarat for more than 10 years. An exit by Mr Advani from the state would have reflected poorly on the prime ministerial candidate, the BJP felt. Mr Advani's supporters, on the other hand, worried that BJP workers in Gujarat would work against him as payback for his known opposition to Mr Modi.

BJP sources say Mr Advani was told that was an invalid concern, and that Mr Modi would help him win Gandhinagar once again.