Advani’s latest Rath Yatra against corruption in public life has justifiably fuelled speculation on whether it has something to do with the octogenarian leader’s pursuit fo the Prime Ministerial post. That this Jan Chetna Yatra was flagged off by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is seen as a bitter adversary of his Gujarat counterpart, Narendra Modi, who obliquely threw his hat in the Prime Ministerial ring. This is an indication that Advani would rather build up a cosy relationship with Nitish in the hope that in the event of a strong NDA showing in the next Lok Sabha election scheduled in 2014, all this may sound too far-fetched but there is no mistaking the jockeying for power in the NDA.

Clearly, despite the rath yatra mobilisation, Advani does not have age on his side, being 84 already. Though his reflexes are extraordinarily good for his age, it is difficult to image a person assuming the charge as Prime Minister at 87. As far Narendra Modi, his role in the 2002 riots in which Muslims were en masse at the receiving end of the majority community’s ire in Ahmedabad when he was at the helm, will always act as an albatross around his neck. That leaves Nitish who, though seen as an inclusive leader, has 20 MPs of his Janata Dal (U) in Parliament and will need the BJP’s solid backing if he is to have any chance of making it.

Significantly, for the first time in the last so many years Advani, in his speech at the start of Jan Chetna Yatra, did not take the name of Narendra Modi, and spoke glowingly of Gujarat’s model of development. Instead, he was all praise for Nitish. In the BJP’s scheme of things, it is crucial how the RSS thinking on the leadership question is. The churning process is indeed on. Only time will tell what turn the BJP internecine battle takes.

Jan Chetna Yatra was originally planned for launch from Gujarat. But flagging off the Yatra from Nitish Kumar’s Bihar, significantly from JP’s village Sitab Diara, Advani could very well be trying to kill two birds with one stone—undercut Modi’s popularity within the BJP as well as project himself as NDA’s consensus candidate for the PM’s post. Anti-corruption and black money theme of Advani’s Yatra reflect the public mood of the current times. Advani’s Rath Yatra in 1990, the original political experiment that led to BJP’s rise on the national scene, was highly regressive. The subsequent demolition of Babri Masjid, sparking of communal riots is a dark chapter in Indian politics. That two decades later Advani’s Rath continues to move along, albeit under a slogan of fighting corruption, is disappointing indeed.

In an interview as far back as December 2006, Advani had said that as Leader of the Opposition in a democracy, he considered himself as the Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2009 general elections. The public revelation irritated some of his colleagues who were not supportive of his candidature.

A major factor in favour of Advani was that he had always been the most powerful leader in the BJP with the exception of Atal Behari Vajpayee who endorsed Advani’s candidature shortly after the interview was done. On May 2, 2007, the then BJP President Rajnath Singh told newsmen that “after Vajpayee, there is only Advani. Advani is, therefore, natural choice for the PM’s post”. On December 10, 2007, the Parliamentary Board of the BJP formally announced that Advani would be the Prime Ministerial candidate for the general election, 2009. The outcome of the 2009 general election gave a resounding victory to the Congress and its allies, allowing incumbent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to continue in office. Following the defeat in the elections, Advani paved the way for Sushma Swaraj to become the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Advani started his first rath yatra from Somnath in September 1990 to Ayodhya. The name of the yatra was Ram Rath Yatra and its purpose was to educate the people abut Ayodhya issue.

Fourth Rath Yatra named Janadesh Yatra started on September 11, 1993 from four corers of the country. Advani himself led this Yatra from Mysore. Traveling through 14 states and two union territories, the Yatra congregated in Bhopal on September 25 in a massive rally. The Janadesh Yatra was a run away success. This Yatra was on the topic of religion bills. The fifth yatra, named Bharat Suraksha Yatra, started on April 6, 2006 and concluded on May 20, 2006. (IPA Service)