New Delhi: Some might say they are jumping the gun, but some BJP leaders are already talking about Narendra Modi being a future Prime Minister.
In Ahemdabad, for instance, Arun Shourie said, "These elections are an opportunity for the people of Gujarat to choose a prime minister from this state and also an opportunity for them to choose the PM for the next elections as well. It's my personal view."
A strong leader and a decisive government - this is the slogan the BJP has been hardselling to have L K Advani elected as the next Prime minister.
And on Friday, the party took it a step further and hinted at a succession line - it being, look forward to Narendra Modi in the near future.
Modi is the BJP star campaigner. He is the poster boy for their Hindutava plank and their role model chief minister. But is the party now grooming him for a bigger role?
"Narendra Modi is doing good work and he is a good leader. We are very proud of him and he can be the future PM. How and when he will become, the party will decide. We do not have the rule of one family where those born in one family become PM," said BJP spokesperson, Ravi Shankar Prasad.
The 'family' however had a reply to this.
Priyanka Gandhi, campaigner for the Congress said, "BJP mein do do PM hain, Advani bhi Modi bhi. PM ke naam pe itne hain, lekin vikas ki baat koyi naheen karta." (In the BJP there are two candidates for PM - Advani as well as Modi. There are too many contenders for the post of prime minister, but no one speaks of progress and development.)