New Delhi:
Former deputy prime minister LK Advani has poured cold water on the BJP's plans to persuade ageing leaders to move over to the House of Elders after making way for younger faces in the Lok Sabha.
A section of the BJP led by president Rajnath Singh had initiated the move to inject fresh blood in the Lok Sabha. Narendra Modi, their prime ministerial face, too is said to be keen that leaders above the age of 75 should be sent to the Rajya Sabha. Mr Advani, 86, and another former party chief Murli Manohar Joshi, 80, headed the list of leaders falling in this category.
The plan, which also enjoys the blessings of the RSS, BJP's ideological mentor, was aimed at countering the growing clout of Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party, which made a stunning debut in electoral politics in December last, getting pitchforked to the second position, only marginally behind the BJP, in Delhi. The enthusiastic support extended by the youth was seen as one of the factors behind the fledgling outfit's powerful show. At 45, Mr Kejriwal was seen as a leader who could represent the aspiration of the youth.
Mr Advani has thwarted this plan. "No one has told me so (about shifting to the Rajya Sabha), and if somebody offers me this suggestion, I will think about it,'' he told reporters at his residence on the Republic Day, on the sidelines of the flag-hoisting function, adding, "If I had to consider the proposal, I would have done it earlier.''
Mr Joshi, too, is learnt to have expressed his reluctance to migrate to the Rajya Sabha, and has reportedly told the BJP president that he wants to be renominated as the party candidate from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat. There are reports that Mr Modi wants to enter the electoral fray from the constituency.