May father was a student of Dhaka University, L K Advani - a student of St Patrick's School, Karachi ::: Their lives would have been different without PARTITION

Between 1936 and 1942, L K Advani studied at St Patrick's School, Karachi and had even stood first in every Class until matriculation.  

He also played cricket but 'intellectual pursuits' as he had said many years later always fascinated him. 

Bharat Ratna for veteran LK Advani: The architect of political rise of BJP

 

Advani, Dec 6, 1992 - Ayodhya

My (blogger's) father Late Nibaran Chandra Dev (Deb) was a student of Dhaka University. The family hailed from Sylhet. Obviously, even my dad's life would have been different. The point I am trying to drive home is things would have been different in more ways than one. 

The transformation of my dad as a 'Babu' was gift of the churning he faced in life... and similarly, the similar churning if not more made Advani a great leader and the chief protagonist of Ram temple movement in 1990. In 2024, Narendra Modi is almost a religo-king. A God man? -- A man who brought back Ram Lalla home. 

Without Partition of India, Advani's life would have been different !! A peep into his life ::: In Brief   

1942: Joined RSS as swayamsevak.

1942: Joined Dayaram Gidumal National College, Hyderabad, during the Quit India movement.

1944: Held a job as a teacher in Model High School, Karachi.

September 1947: Left Sindh, came to Delhi during Partition.

1947-1951: Organised RSS work in Alwar, Bharatpur, Kota, Bundi, and Jhalawar as RSS secretary of Karachi branch.

1957: Shifted to Delhi to assist Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

1958-63: Secretary of Delhi State Jana Sangh.

1960-1967: Joined Organiser, Jana Sangh's political journal, as assistant editor.

February 1965: Married Kamla Advani, with whom he has two children, Pratibha and Jayant.

April 1970: Entered Rajya Sabha.

December 1972: Elected Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) president.

June 1975: Arrested in Bengaluru (then Bangalore) during Emergency, taken to Bangalore Central Jail with other BJS members.

March 1977 to July 1979: Held position of Information and Broadcasting Minister.

1980-86: Held position of BJP general secretary.

May 1986: Made BJP president.

March 1988: Re-elected BJP president.

1988: Held position of Home Minister in BJP government.

1990: Began Ram Rath Yatra from Somnath to Ayodhya.

1997: Began Swarna Jayanti Rath Yatra to celebrate Golden Jubilee of India's Independence.

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October 1999-May 2004: Home Minister 

June 2002-May 2004: Deputy Prime Minister under Vajpayee

(2002 riots - he defended Narendra Modi fiercely and rejected pressure to replace Namo as Gujarat Chief Minister) 

Blogger and Advani: 2001, Nagaland 

L K Advani might have intense political intent when he launched the Ram Rath Yatra. But on the face value, the BJP leaders argued that the Yatra effectively drove home the point that if God Ram represented the idea of conduct, Ram Rajya represented the idea of good governance.  

Advani was to say later: “......The sheer magnitude of popular support made it comparable to Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s appropriation of Ganesh Chaturthi to mobilise public opinion against colonial rule. The cultural dimension of the Yatra made it comparable to the anti-cow slaughter campaign of Gandhi”. 

This Movement had unleashed Hindu chauvinism across the country and the spirit of it was well reflected in a Bollywood move ‘Bombay’ that showed an aging Hindu Tamil gentleman mocking at a Muslim bricks maker, “Make me some bricks inscribed Jai Shri Ram in them’. 

One reason for unleashing the Hindu assertiveness was guided by a conviction that Hindus would face an existential crisis. 

Former Nagaland Governor M M Thomas was at Kohima Raj Bhawan on October 23, 1990 when L K Advani was arrested at Samastipur in Bihar. Some of us had walked out of a press conference with union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, a chief proponent of V P Singh’s Mandal Politics. 

Late M M Thomas was more direct and he said: “Now, my government in Delhi will fall”. Dr Thomas, himself a prominent Christian leader from Kerala and author of ‘My Ecumenical Journey’ had said: 

“It is in a peculiarity of Hinduism, there is strength. There cannot be the danger of extinction for Hinduism as is being made out by BJP. This is something I respect about Hinduism. It is tolerant and pro-pluralism. But I wonder, why RSS and BJP talk about Hindutva and not Bharatiyata or Indianness”.

 

LK Advani's son said: “My family and I are extremely delighted on this new development (Bharat Ratna). I would like to thank PM Narendra Modi…”

On this, Jayant Advani said: "...My family and I are extremely delighted on this new development. I would like to thank PM Narendra Modi for conferring this award on my father.

He added, "My father's contribution to public life has been immense and it is wonderful to note that at this stage in his life, his efforts are being recognised in this magnificent way."  

Eulogising Advani’s Politics of Rath Yatra

L K Advani's attempt to unite Hindus through Ram Rath Yatra, also came at a time when the society was already slashed on casteist lines. Rath Yatra gave the religious divide. And of course V P Singh’s virtual ultimatum to push Lalu Prasad to get Advani arrested, was a watershed moment in the country's history.  

There is little to dispute that both the verdicts of the court of law on Ram Temple – 2010 and also November 2019 – left Advani vindicated. In retrospect, it can be stated that the Yatra had sparked off a strong Hindu fervour – something beyond comprehension in late eighties and early nineties. 

It may not be wrong to suggest that to Mr Advani, Ram Mandir Movement was akin to a pilgrimage. Thus effortlessly, he wrote: 

“The pilgrimage (Mandir movement) will be over the day Ram Lalla finds his rightful place in a temple commemorating the sacred site of his birth”.

Perhaps – from the calendar point of view an important date came on November 9, 2019 when the judges said the temple could be constructed. 

It was clear that the Supreme Court verdict has met the ‘demand’ for a construction of a grand Ram temple at the disputed site – where Hindus believed there existed a temple from ancient era.  Many years back, Advani wrote: “The Yatra effectively drove home the point that if Ram represented the idea of conduct, Ram Rajya represented the idea of governance. 

The sheer magnitude of popular support made it comparable to Tilak’s appropriation of Ganesh Chaturthi to mobilise public opinion against colonial rule. The cultural dimension of the yatra made it comparable to the anti-cow slaughter campaign of Gandhi”.

The Yatra began in Somnath in Gujarat on September 25, 1990, and passed scores of villages and cities. It travelled approximately 300 kilometers a day, and Advani addressed six public rallies in a day. The yatra caused an outpouring of both religious and militant sentiments among Hindus.

According to Advani himself – “The yatra was a tremendous success.....The yatra also brought into sharp focus the contrast between lok shakti, people’s powers and Raj Shakti as represented by the elitist who somewhat arguably believed in showing disrespect to Indian cultural heritage”.  

Thus L K Advani’s website has said – “The awesome tidal wave of nationalism unleashed by the yatra unnerved the pseudo-secularists and Jai Shri Ram became more than a traditional greeting....”  

In circa 2019, ironically the verdict not only cleared the way for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, it came just a day after he celebrated his 92nd birthday.