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NEW DELHI: There is a straw in the wind that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat, in a bid to end the internecine feud in the Bharatiya Janata Party, may zero in on a replacement for BJP president Rajnath Singh from outside the party headquarters. Earlier, Arun Shourie, party MP, suggested a “bombard the headquarters” strategy. Mr. Bhagwat described him as a “respected intellectual.” Several names are now doing the rounds including Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan, the former Himachal Chief Minister Shanta Kumar, some senior leaders from Uttar Pradesh and the former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, the last mentioned by Mr. Shourie as a person with high integrity and unusual competence. There is also the view that to effectively control the BJP machine, a ‘pracharak’ with very close links to the RSS may be made the party chief. Mr. Bhagwat’s lunch with Murli Manohar Joshi on Saturday was seen as a clear signal from the RSS that it wished to consult the BJP leadership at all levels on the current crisis, and take a cross-section of views on board before arriving at any decision. Separately, several leaders said that while Mr. Advani might step down as Leader of the Opposition “very soon,” as “matters cannot be allowed to drift in this manner,” Mr. Rajnath Singh would be replaced only in December or January next year as the organisational election process had already begun. Under the party constitution, a person cannot enjoy two consecutive terms as party president. Said a senior leader: “On Friday night it was a show of strength by the Advani camp. The four leaders [Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, M. Venkaiah Naidu and Ananth Kumar] met at Mr. Advani’s residence; then together they went to see Mr. Bhagwat and returned to Mr. Advani’s residence, where there were late night confabulations once again.” It was also noted that immediately thereafter, “news” was flashed that it was “decided” that Mr. Jaitley would be the next party president and Ms. Swaraj, Leader of the Opposition. On Saturday, party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar was forced to deny that story: “We were amused to see today’s news that a succession plan in the party has been finalised and a change was imminent. Discussions are on between various party leaders and the Sangh leadership centred on the recent party events and the general political situation in the country. There was no discussion on a leadership change in the BJP.” A similar assertion was made by RSS spokesman Ram Madhav. Asked whether Mr. Advani would continue as Leader of the Opposition for the next five years, Mr. Javadekar said: “Mr. Advani has himself spoken [on this subject].” He was referring to Mr. Advani’s assertion a few weeks ago that he would complete his five-year tenure. Privately, party leaders said the RSS always made it a point to try and arrive at consensus within the top hierarchy of the BJP. Mr. Advani and Mr. Rajnath Singh would be consulted and a new leadership acceptable to both might emerge.
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