New Delhi: Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is now on record backing Leader of the Opposition L K Advani as the BJP's next Prime Ministerial candidate – support that L K Advani certainly has not been expecting.
He said that his blessings are with him for the race. Earlier, in an exclusive interview with CNN-IBN, Advani said that in the next round of Lok Sabha elections, he will be the prime ministerial candidate from the Opposition's side.
When asked if he will be the Oppositions Prime Ministerial candidate for 2009 elections, Advani said, “According to the British system, Leader of the Opposition is supposed to be the Prime Minister in waiting.”
Vajpayee's remark assumes significance as it came on a day when Rajnath Singh gave subtle hints that he was the ‘bridegroom’ who would take ‘bride’ (power) and install it in New Delhi – clearly suggesting that he was a candidate for the top job.
In December 2005, during the silver jubilee convention of the BJP in Mumbai, Vajpayee had created a flutter by declaring Advani as "Ram" and the late Pramod Mahajan as "Laxman" of the party.
However, Advani had declared a decade back that Vajpayee would be the Prime Ministerial candidate whenever the BJP would come to power.
The first BJP government at the Centre was a coalition in 1996, which lasted only 13 days.
(With Agency inputs)
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