'Advani is BJP's choice if need be'

By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, OCT. 16. There is no doubt in the mind of the Bharatiya Janata Party that if the situation arises, the Union Home Minister, Mr. L. K. Advani, will be its choice for the position of Prime Minister. It will not tolerate opposition from any of the allies on this and would ``rather break the National Democratic Alliance than accept any other leader as Prime Minister.''

The question has been popping up regularly - the media has carried out some surveys on who was most acceptable as Prime Minister after Mr. Vajpayee. Mr. Advani's criticism of Mr. Jaswant Singh in relation to the Kandahar episode was seen in this context, and Mr. Vajpayee not having named a number two before going in for surgery also fuelled the debate. And of course, Mr. Vajpayee's health itself has generated interest in the question: who after Vajpayee?

Mr. Advani's participation in the RSS camp in Agra yesterday is being seen by some political observers as a move to get the RSS' backing on the succession issue.

While the general view seems to be that Mr. Advani was the ``natural choice of the BJP'' as the man next to Mr. Vajpayee, there are some who shy away from discussing a possible post- Vajpayee situation. The Prime Minister is in good health and the question about a successor does not arise, they say. But the general mood seems to be that though the question has not arisen and is unlikely to arise in the near future, it is clear the BJP's choice would be Mr. Advani, and it will not tolerate opposition from the allies even if such a protest materialises.

Speaking on a condition of anonymity, a senior leader said the ``BJP would rather walk out of the NDA than accept the dictation of allies on this subject.''

``The BJP's choice is very clear. Mr. Advani is the number two man after Mr. Vajpayee, and he will be the choice for the job of Prime Minister, if the need arises,'' Mr. J. P. Mathur said adding that at the moment there was no danger to the Prime Minister's health. And his view was that there would be no opposition from the allies.

Mr. Jana Krishnamurthi was more careful in responding to questions on the likely successor to Mr. Vajpayee if the need arose. The BJP was a democratic party and the ``decision will be taken by the parliamentary party. But the time has not come. Atalji will continue, in fact, he will lead the party in the elections due in 2004.'' However, in the case of Mr. Vajpayee a unilateral announcement was made by Mr. Advani and no one in the BJP remembered that electing the leader was the privilege of the parliamentary party.

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