BJP veteran L K Advani today adviced the party leadership to ‘speak in one voice’ and provide an alternative to the UPA as the Congress-led government has ‘lost’ legitimacy and next general elections in 2013 are almost a ‘certainty’. Mr Advani also asked the party leadership to ruthlessly put down ‘the tendency to speak in multiple voices.’ “The people’s disillusionment is now turning into anger. The tipping point in politics always comes when the people are angry. And when the people are angry, they tend to give a thumping mandate to any alternative that is credible. Therefore, the BJP can prove many pundits wrong by emerging as a credible alternative. We have an opportunity to repeat 1998 and 1999- indeed, we have an opportunity to do even better,” Mr Advani said while delivering concluding speech at the party’s National Council meeting here. BJP president Nitin Gadkari, senior party leaders Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and BJP chief ministers Narendra Modi (Gujarat), Shivraj Singh Chauhan (MP), Prem Kumar Dhumal (HP), Raman Singh (Chhattisgarh), Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi and others were present during Mr Advani’s speech. His advice has come amid reports of differences within the party on different issues, rebel situation in Karnataka due to former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and party leader Arun Shourie’s reported statement supporting diesel price hike and FDI in retail. He also suggested that the BJP should start preparation to select candidates for Lok Sabha constituencies. The BJP’s three-day National Executive and National Council meeting ended today. He alleged that the UPA-II government has lost its political legitimacy and majority in the Lok Sabha. “The UPA-II government is now on life support. And if we consider the specific issue that has led to the government losing its majority– its recent decisions on diesel price hike and FDI in retail– its is clear that UPA-II cannot even rely on that critical life support,” the BJP Parliamentary Party Chairman said. Mr Advani added that the parties that were providing the life support were themselves opposed to the recent economic decisions and two of them – the SP and the DMK- even participated in the September 20 Bharat Bandh.
—UNI