On campaign trail in Gandhinagar, Advani says attacks on Modi benefit BJP

As Lal Krishna Advani walks into Sardar Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad, a number of visitors congratulate him “in advance", for what they believe is a foregone conclusion for the Bharatiya Janata Party. An elderly couple from Andhra Pradesh waits long to compliment him and to request for pictures. “Sir this time you can expect good results from both sides of our state, Andhra and Telangana,” the man says. [caption id=“attachment_1441997” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Veteran BJP leader LK Advani.[/caption] Another visitor at the airport tells him the BJP-led coalition will do “extremely well” in Maharashtra too. Advani, now seated in the VIP lounge awaiting ATC clearance for his special flight, is happy, but guardedly so. Talking to Firstpost, Advani says the kind of attacks that the rival Congress and other parties are mounting against Modi will only end up benefiting the BJP’s PM nominee. “Indira Gandhi benefited from this kind of attack by opposition parties. All parties had then one thing in common that Indira must be removed and in the 1971 election she came out with a slogan that worked for her. This time attacks from all corners against Modi will benefit him.” Indira’s slogan had been Woh kahten hain Indira hatao, main kahti hoon Garibi Hatao. The difference between Narendra Modi and Indira Gandhi is one basic point – Indira was then incumbent Prime Minister and Modi is challenger to the incumbent Congress government. And never before has there been polarisation against a leader staking claim to provide an alternative government. “I have seen all elections since 1952. But never before have I seen this kind of outpouring of popular sentiment. You ask any one in any part of the country, you get a loud and clear message that the current government is going. The Congress will have its worst ever performance and BJP its best ever performance,” Advani says. Earlier in the day, addressing a meeting of intelligentsia, Advani spoke at length about electoral reforms and compulsory voting, mentioning that the Gujarat Assembly had passed one such resolution that was still pending with the Governor. He said he had earlier spent time discussing sanitation and health in his blogs but now, in the run up to the elections, he was addressing public rallies and preferring to talk on issues closer to his heart. Gujarat, in any case, is close to his heart. After all, this is the state his father chose as his home (in Kutch region) after he had to migrate from Karachi during Partition. His quoted his grandmother, “Jeena Surat mein, marna Kashi (Varanasi) mein.” That’s how full of life his adopted home-state is, he said. Though Advani has been in and out of Gandhinagar to campaign for the party in other parts of the country, his son Jayant, daughter-in-law Gitika and daughter Pratibha are alternately camping in Gandhinagar to make his presence felt. His three-year old granddaughter Navya is giving him some moments of relaxation at home, both in Delhi and in their hired spacious flat in Prahladnagar in Ahmedabad. He is now contesting for the sixth time from Gandhinagar constituency and his core supporters believe that his victory margin would be bigger than the 1.71 lakh margin he had last time. Challenging him from the Congress is Kirit Patel, not really a heavyweight. But the BJP is not taking any chances. The party’s well oiled machinery in the state is working hard to ensure a grand victory. This time around Advani is concentrating more on road shows than on public meetings. That is because people have known him and heard him for long, they want to just see him around now, says a party worker closely associated with his campaign. It is interesting to see how efficiently the BJP’s machinery has worked in Ahmedabad. Around 5.30 pm when Advani reaches Gurukul Swami Narayan temple from where his road show in Ghatlodia Assembly segment of Gandhi Nagar parliamentary constituency is to begin, there is not much activity. Just as the BJP patriarch enters the temple for his puja, BJP workers start pouring in. By the time Advani emerges in an open jeep a sporting a safa and tilak , the whole area is flooded with BJP flags. As his cavalcade moves, more and more enthusiastic workers join. Curious onlookers came out of their houses, shops to take a closer look. Advani may have represented the same constituency for five terms since 1991 but there still seems to be an eagerness among people about him. As he nears Satadhar Chaurasta, a furious wind storm hits his road show. The canopy placed atop his open jeep to serve as an umbrella gets uprooted. A heavy downpour starts. Advani is drenched but he continues for some time. Party workers, however, are enjoying the change in weather. It is too hot during the day and the rain is a welcome relief. But then the ferocity of wind is making it impossible to keep the show orderly and it has to be abandoned. Advani who initially had not been too comfortable with the idea of a road show, has started enjoying them nowadays. But that was perhaps because of the cheerful support that he gets on the road. He has, after all, been a long distance yatra man than short distance city centric road shows. But Advani has a different take on such situations, whether it is technology or new modes of campaigning: “Buddah tab jab seekhna bandh. You age when you lose appetite to learn new things.”