Advani, Joshi put in old age home by BJP: Congress

The Congress on Tuesday reacted with sarcasm and derision to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s decision to drop its founder leaders L K Advani and M M Joshi from the Parliamentary Board, saying they have been put in an "old age home" and their 'Margdarshak Mandal' (guiding committee) will only be a 'mookdarshak' (mute spectator).

The party said the development marks the "process of centralisation of power" in one hand, apparently referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Congress leader Rashid Alvi mocked the BJP's new body Margdarshak Mandal, formed on Tuesday of which Advani and Joshi besides ailing former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are members.

"It is a mookdarshak mandal. It is like an old age home from where Advani and Joshi will witness the functioning of the BJP like mutes. We were all aware that they are being sidelined," he told mediapersons.

Another Congress leader and former Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said the development marks the "process of centralisation of power" in one hand.

Nationalist Congress Party leader D P Tripathi, however, termed it as an internal matter of BJP and said new faces, who have come in the place of BJP veterans, are also important for a party.

"How the Parliamentary Board is constituted is the prerogative of the president of the party. This is the convention. But the organisation matters. In place of veterans, they have chosen new faces and these new faces are also important in the party," he said.

Veteran BJP leader C P Thakur said it could be the "process of change". This is the party's decision on which he will not comment, he said.

"The party will keep on changing. It might be that process of change," he said.