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Vajpayee will play the role of ‘mukhiya’, says Rajnath Singh

Shimla: BJP president Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday that party veteran Atal Bihari Vajpayee would play the role of mukhiya (head of the family) of the party. His remark comes a day after senior leader L.K. Advani was anointed as its prime ministerial candidate.

“Vajpayeeji has been a source of inspiration for the BJP and will continue to guide us,” he told journalists here.

Mr. Singh said the decision to anoint Mr. Advani as the party’s prime ministerial candidate was taken in consultation with all leaders and allies and its timing had nothing to do with the Gujarat polls.

“The BJP decided to project Advaniji after consulting everybody, senior leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee as well the NDA’s allies,” Mr. Singh said.

“He [Advani] is the BJP’s natural choice for the post. I had said this in May itself,” Mr. Singh said.

Asked if Mr. Advani, known for his hardline Hindutva politics, will be acceptable to the NDA allies, the BJP chief said “they were part of the NDA government in which Mr. Advani was Deputy Prime Minister ... Why will they have any reservations about him?”

Asked whether the anointment meant the BJP was visualising mid-term parliamentary polls, Mr. Singh said, “Even if that does not happen, the general election is not far away.”

Mr. Singh attacked the Congress-led UPA government for incidents of terrorism. “Terrorism has gained a strong foothold in the country due to the ineffective security policy of the Manmohan Singh government which looks at the problem from the communal angle.”

He said the government should not have repealed POTA without making alternative legal provisions. — PTI

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