File photo of Nitin Gadkari
BJP leader
Nitin Gadkari met party president Rajnath Singh and veteran leader LK Advani in Delhi today reportedly as part of a series of meetings he is holding to lobby for a comeback as BJP chief.
Mr Gadkari had also met the BJP's prime ministerial candidate
Narendra Modi in Ahemdabad last evening after voting ended in the mammoth nine-phase general election and exit polls predicted a big win for the BJP. (
Modi-led BJP Set For Victory, Exit Polls Show)
He is armed with a clean chit from Maharashtra's Income Tax department, which has clarified that "there is no enquiry/investigation presently pending" against Mr Gadkari, whose bid to make history as the first BJP president to get a second straight term was scuttled when an investigation was initiated into allegations of malpractice in his businesses.
Mr Advani was at the forefront of the effort last year to ensure that Mr Gadkari was not renominated as BJP president after his term ended, arguing that the charges of corruption against him would hurt the party's prospects in the general elections, then a little over a year away. (
Also Read: LK Advani backs Nitin Gadkari over Narendra Modi, say sources)
The BJP's ideological mentor the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS, which had wanted its man Mr Gadkari to continue, eventually picked Rajnath Singh as the party chief who would lead the BJP into the elections.
Mr Gadkari has continued to be part of the BJP's top decision-making panels and contested the elections from Nagpur. He also played an important part in placating Mr Advani when the latter repeatedly objected to Mr Modi's elevation in the party.
Now, he reportedly wants the job of party president back if Rajnath Singh is inducted into a Narendra Modi government at the Centre, should the BJP-led national alliance NDA manage a majority in Parliament. (
Won't Be Part of a Narendra Modi Government: Rajnath Singh)
Votes will be counted for the general election on Friday, May 16. Most Exit Polls have predicted that the NDA will get to the 272-seat majority mark.
Sources said Rajnath Singh has indicated that he does not want a role in the government and might choose to continue as BJP president.