'A Leader Misplaced'

It is widely believed that Atal Bihari Vajpayee somehow was misplaced at the BJP and perhaps did not entirely share the same beliefs as the RSS and BJP.

However at no point in time did he act “misplaced”. He might not be the blue eyed shining Hindu boy that Advani was for the RSS and the people. But never did he appear confused.

He might not have shared that extreme form of prejudice against the Muslims as the RSS did, but there has been no clear evidence of him being a truly secular Icon.

As evident from his stand on the ‘Godhra Kaand’ he might have found himself going overboard with his differences from the prevailing ideology.

However Advani never let his disposition of the matter get to a point where the sangh would’ve had to remind him of his place.

It has been very evident that the Vajpayee-Advani partnership was more than pure politics.

It is perhaps the most Powerful leadership in Indian politics ever.

What made this partnership stronger than most was the arrangement of duties.

It had been very clear from the beginning of the BJP at the time Vajpayee joined hands that Advani would deal with party politics and the Sangh.

when it came to declare a face for the elections Vajpayee was signed up for the job something Advani accepted and promoted, something Nehru couldn’t do.

Unlike what Kamraj was to Shastri, Advani was more than a kingmaker.

He was a friend, someone who knew challenging him to the candidacy wasn’t worth the trouble . Moreover he knew Vajpayee would be a better leader, the one the nation deserves.

Through the years when Advani was the Saffron flag bearer who got arrested in the Rath Yatra of 90’ on Lalu Prasad Yadav’s order [The then CM of Bihar], Vajpayee kept a comparatively mellow voice on the agenda.

The master of oratory could never go on to earn the aura that surrounded Lal Krishna Advani. HIs massive following by millions of "kattar Hindus" was unparalleled. something not even Joshi could have.

After the December 6 incident perhaps for the first time Vajpayee found himself perhaps pondering over wether this was something which he had foreseen.

But since BJP wasn’t in power at the centre at that time Vajpayee spoke for himself and not his Government.

Even tough he said he had no hand in the incident and said “this was something which shouldn’t have happened”. Few believe that he did address the Karsevaks at the Jhandewalan park in Lucknow .

It is hard to believe that contrary to his claims he didn’t know about the plan of the demolition, but it is sure that he isn’t an authority answerable for the incident. With his partner the frontrunner in the “Rath Yatra” and Joshi and Bharti as his accomplices this isn’t the first instance where this was attempted.

This brought huge success and a favourable wave of opinion for the BJP thus by extension for Atal-Ji.

A man acclaimed for his manners and politeness with a keen diplomatic attitude towards the questionable actions who was yet to have the taste of actual power.

This was the incident which painted the saffron as the culprits of violence in the minds of few.

However in actuality they became the culprits of success as evident by the infamous picture of Uma Bharti on the back of Joshi.

For the first time ever Vajpayee felt powerless while being the most powerful man in the country.

It was after the “Godhra Kaand” when Vajpayee felt alone. When he wanted Narendra Modi to be sacked for his reckless actions in Gujarat but the “King Of Gandhinagar” wouldn’t have it that way.

During the “Godhra Incident” Vajpayee was the PM and Advani was the “home minister” [Second In Line]. It is believed that once Vajpayee indicated the intentions of sacking Modi, Advani came to his rescue.

In charge of party politics and thus by extension the fate of Narendra Modi Advani advocated against this. There have been claims that Advani even threatened Vajpayee by saying that he would resign if he made any reckless statements indicting such a measure.

His resining would lead to the resigning of the entire cabinet which was nothing but a ploy used by Advani to showcase who had more chips in their arsenal.

Advani's support for Modi would eventually be problematic for him was also something Vajpayee had reportedly predicted.

Of all the claims that have been made in Atal-Ji’s name, the claim of him being Misplaced at BJP carries the least precedence.

What the man’s beliefs may be are unknown as is expected from a secretive leader. However it should not be misunderstood for a “misplaced leader”.

Even if the incident of Atal-Ji’s powerlessness within the BJP was apparent it was unaccustomed.