Back to plains, Atal modifies

As former prime minister A.B. Vajpayee returned from the cool environs of Manali today, Parivar leaders got together to lower the heat gener...

As former prime minister A.B. Vajpayee returned from the cool environs of Manali today, Parivar leaders got together to lower the heat generated by his comments on Gujarat.

Vajpayee set the stage for a reconciliation before leaving for Delhi. He told reporters at Bhuntar airstrip that Gujarat was a thing of the past. When asked if he was still in favour of Modi’s ouster, he said: ‘‘That has become an issue of the past. Look at the new year and the coming Assembly elections and we have to face them.’’

RSS joint secretary (BJP affairs) Madan Dass Devi, who called on Vajpayee here tonight, picked up the thread from there. He told reporters after the meeting: ‘‘What he (Vajpayee) said today is final.’’

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When asked about Gujarat, Devi said: ‘‘They (BJP) will decide and you will come to know. Who will be the chief minister, is for the party to decide.’’ As for the differences between the RSS and the BJP, he said, they will resolve the issues mutually.

Vajpayee, who had been posturing himself against the party-line on Gujarat, today positioned himself along it. When told that he and party president Venkaiah Naidu were speaking differently on Gujarat, Vajpayee said: ‘‘We say only one thing.’’

As for Naidu’s contention that the party had won in several states despite the Gujarat violence, he said: ‘‘When we talk of victory, we talk of states like Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan where we won 23 out of 25 seats. In Gujarat also, we have won more seats, but the performance could have been better.’’

Vajpayee’s remarks, rather than implying a softening of stand on Gujarat, are indicative of an attempt to transcend the contentious issue in public perception a day before the BJP Central Parliamentary Board meets to decide on the fate of the Gujarat Chief Minister. The stress on preparation for coming Assembly polls means that the party has to re-orient its image and leave the Gujarat baggage behind.

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The image makeover is being considered necessary before the party faces the next round of Assembly polls. Shiv Sena, the party’s ally in Maharashtra, has already made its discomfort over Modi public. Since the national executive has been convened in Mumbai to generate a favourable atmosphere in Maharashtra before the Assembly polls, it is imperative that the party ensures that the Modi issue does not come haunting it there too.

Before Devi met Vajpayee, L.K. Advani and Jaswant Singh came calling too. It was obvious that the leadership was trying to work out an understanding before the Central Parliamentary Board took up the matter.