Expelled Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh has invoked the battle scene from Hindu epic Mahabharata to defend his "covering up" for Leader of Opposition L K Advani during the election campaign, when he had said that the former home minister did not know that he was going with three terrorists in a plane to Kandahar.
Former National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra said on Thursday that senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Union Home Minister L K Advani was aware of all the key decisions taken with regard to the hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane to Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani's close aide, Sudheendra Kulkarni, on Sunday announced that he was quitting the party because of ideological differences with it.Kulkarni, who has been with the BJP for 13 years as a party activist and political advisor, said, "I have ideological differences with the party, especially where it stands today. I have been a full time activist of the party, I am now ending my activist association with the party."
The BJP on Monday welcomed the Allahabad High Court verdict on Ayodhya issue saying it was a "significant step" towards building a grand temple at the birthplace of Lord Ram and opened a new chapter for national integration.
Firing a fresh salvo at senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani, expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh has claimed that the former home minister stopped former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from taking action against Gujarat CM Narendra Modi over the 2002 riots on the ground that it could trigger uproar in the party.
According to Times Now channel, there was a perceived lack of unity among the party leadership and the BJP squarely failed to advertise its agenda among the general public.
In a startling revelation, expelled Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh said on Wednesday that he had sent an advance copy of his latest book "Jinnah -- India-Partition-Independence" to senior party leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha L K. Advani, and therefore, this made his removal from the party after 30 years of association even more painful and shocking.
Apparently reflecting their discomfort, no BJP leader today showed up at a function in which Jaswant Singh's book on Jinnah was released and where his view that Nehru was responsible for the Partition was contested.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Saturday said he failed to understand why the Supreme Court has deferred pronouncement of the verdict on the Ayodhya title suit when the nation has been waiting for a decision on the dispute since decades.
Trouble is brewing for the Women's Reservation Bill with a section of the Bharatiya Janata Party Members of Parliament in Lok Sabha expressing their opposition to the measure and threatening to vote against it and the party decided to crack on the dissenters by issuing a whip to them to back it on Thursday.
The Bhartiya Janata Party on Wednesday cleared the air about confusion regarding the apparent two versions of the result of the meeting between senior leader L K Advani and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangha chief Mohan Bhagwat.
Ahead of the party's brainstorming session next week, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani has met Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat amidst clear indications that the Shimla meet may skip the issue of who and what exactly were the reasons behind the party's defeat in the Lok Sabha elections.
Ahead of the Ramjanambhoomi- Babri Masjid court verdict, the Bharatiya Janata Party top brass held a meeting with its state in-charges and co-incharges to discuss the future course of action on the issue as well as the strategy for taking on the Congress in the states.
Sending a strong message that the Bharatiya Janata Party was firmly behind jailed Amit Shah, the party's senior leader L K Advani went to Sabarmati prison to meet the former Gujarat minister who is an accused in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter killing case.
Leader of Opposition L K Advani on Thursday said after the Indo-Pak Joint Statement at Sharm-el Sheikh, the government may be "inclined to settle" the Kashmir issue in blatant violation of the unanimous resolution on it in Parliament in 1995.
Leader of opposition L K Advani on Tuesday led a delegation of 146 members of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and met President Pratibha Devisingh Patil to intervene in the row triggered by the joint-statement issued after talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani at Sharm-el Sheikh, Egypt -- wherein the issue of Baluchsitan was mentioned for the first time.
Senior BJP leader L K Advani was on Sunday elected unopposed the working chairman of the National Democratic Alliance till incumbent Atal Bihari Vajpayee recovers from ill-health while acting NDA convenor Sharad Yadav has been elected as the convenor.
After two successive Lok Sabha election defeats, the Bharatiya Janata Party was in an introspective mood on Wednesday with its president Nitin Gadkari making a blunt speech attacking unnamed leaders for the party's plight, while senior leader L K Advani asked partymen to work for cohesion.
Senior leaders of Bhartiya Janata Party L K Advani and Sushma Swaraj on Friday termed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's talks with his Pakistani counterpart Gilani as a complete surrender of the national interests.
The Indian government's lack of seriousness in dealing with terrorism is the reason terrorists keep on striking in the country, according to Sumit Ganguly, director of the India Studies Institute at Indiana University.He, however, noted that India has responded very well in the aftermath of the terrorist attack on Mumbai. He was quick to add, "Simply saying 'we will maintain our resolve in the face of this terrorist threat' is not enough.
Senior BJP leader L K Advani on Thursday seemed to echo the sentiments of Congress President Sonia Gandhi on the attitude of leaders when he said there was a need to change the image of "the ugly Indian politician".
Rebutting senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani's charge, Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad said on Thursday there was no political pressure on it in handling the Malegaon blast probe nor was there any substance in the charge that accused Purohit was tortured in custody.
Move over, national political stalwarts. The battle for the hustings in this tribal-dominated state is virtually centered around BJP chief minister Raman Singh and Congress leader and former chief minister Ajit Jogi. A look at BJP posters, advertisements and other campaign material leaves little doubt that the saffron party is trying to retain Chhattisgarh by showcasing the achievements and positive image of Singh.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani was not amused with some of the party MPs joining RJD supremo Lalu Prasad and SP chief Mulayam Singh to hold a mock Parliament session and reprimanded his colleague Gopinath Munde for participating in it.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Sunday found support from rivals Communist party of India - Marxist, Janata Dal - Secular and Lok Janshakti Party for his suggestion for the re-introduction of ballot papers in place of Electronic Voting Machines.Advani has not cast any doubts on the results of the Lok Sabha elections but feels the country should revert to ballot papers, starting with the Maharashtra assembly elections in October and some more states later.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Wednesday expressed concern over reported imposition of 'Jaziya' tax by the Taliban on Hindus and Sikhs living in Pakistan and demanded that the Indian government take all necessary steps to prevent "persecution" of the two communities living there.
Amid allegations and counter-allegations at the Bharatiya Janata Party meet to discuss the poll defeat, the party's top leader L K Advani said internal bickering had demoralised the grassroot workers of the party. The top eader also emphasized on Hindutva and advocated strong relations with RSS during his speech at the BJP National Executive meeting in New Delhi.
Communist Party of India-Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu would be given a state funeral in Kolkata on Tuesday after Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani and a host of dignitaries and commoners pay homage to him.
The BJP's leadership is suffering from a disease called 'last bus syndrome': If it can't catch this bus to power, then it will never get to be in power.
Divisions within the Bharatiya Janata Party grew deeper in the aftermath of its electoral drubbing with senior leaders questioning the leadership on how the party was being run and even the review of performance was being "cloaked in secrecy."
Brushing aside BJP's dictat to its leaders not to go public on goings-on in the party, its senior leader Arun Shourie has sought to reopen the old wounds about the Kandahar hijack episode involving L K Advani.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Saturday virtually ruled out the removal of Reddy brothers from his ministry for the present, saying such a step could be considered if charges are proved.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani indicated on Monday that he had no plans to retire from politics."I do not want to retire," Advani told BBC news channel in an interview. He told the questioner that he gives advice to the party whenever it is sought.
Altogether 160 MLAs voted in favour of the confidence motion while no vote was cast against the same.
Senior BJP leader and party prime ministerial candidate L K Advani on Tuesday alleged that the Manmohan Singh Government is the most inefficient one which compromised national security and pushed the price-graph due to its financial mismanagement.
Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader stepped down from the position of leader of opposition from Lok Sabha on Friday and handed over the reins to his successor Sushma Swaraj, who had been the party's deputy leader in Lok Sabha.
Senior BJP leader L K Advani hoped that the strike called against price rise would put an end to criticism that the opposition was not doing enough on the issue. "Through you (the media) I would like to thank the people of the country for making Bharat Bandh an unprecedented success. I would also like to thank the people of Delhi and our supporters here for this success," he said.
Pranab Mukherjee Gulam Nabi Azad and Ahmed Patel will liaise on behalf of Congress President Sonia Gandhi, while Gujarat Chief Miniser Narendra Modi, Jaswant Singh, S Gurumurthy and Cho Ramaswamy are the pointsmen for Bharatiya Janata Party prime ministerial candidate L K Advani.
Gadkari has been called to New Delhi for the meeting and will be anointed party chief. The decision will be ratified by the BJP national council. The elevation of Swaraj as Leader of Opposition is almost a certainty, sources said.
A 96-hour bandh called by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha on Monday to press for Gorkhaland in the Darjeeling hills has been withdrawn.GJM general secretary Roshan Giri told PTI from Delhi that the decision was taken after senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley urged that the shutdown be called off for a normal situation to prevail before the tripartite talks begin in Darjeeling on December 21.However, the indefinite fast will continue.
