In 2019, Advani made a veiled attack on PM Modi and had said, "Essence of Indian democracy is respect for diversity".... "the BJP has never regarded those who disagree with us politically as enemies” :::: Most befitting thing Modi could announce- Bharat Ratna for Advani

Post #Ram temple this is most befitting thing Modi could announce 

..Bharat Ratna for #Advani ...a disciple's tribute to Guru...

"I am very happy to share that Shri LK Advani Ji will be conferred the Bharat Ratna. I also spoke to him and congratulated him," Narendra Modi tweeted.

In a Facebook posting after my meeting with L K Advani on December 16, 2014; I had posed a simple question whether the not so often said maxim, “the Success is the ultimate failure” would really apply to the BJP patriarch. 

This is neither the first time nor the last time these issues are being debated. But the former Deputy Prime Minister did made a big difference to Indian politics. None can deny, in retrospect when the history of Indian politics is written – the veteran Advani would always be remembered for bringing about major transitions in Indian politics.

"What BJP is today is due to the immense organizational ability of Advani. It is rather unfortunate that he had virtually vanished from the main political arena". 

In June 2013 when in Goa conclave BJP made Narendra Modi the saffron party’s chairman of election committee – a prelude to BJP’s PM-candidate – I wrote in The Statesman, it was almost a “forced retirement” for the Lohpurush. 

In my book, ‘Ayodhya: Battle for Peace’ published 2011, I had a chapter ‘L K Advani: Politics of Rath Yatra’ dedicated to him. “It goes without saying that Ayodhya movement and L K Advani’s name would go synonymous with each other”. And in a way Advani, not the usual run-of-the-mill politician, had found his “political roots in Ayodhya’s Ram”. 

Well, that was 1990…but 23 years later by 2013 the story had changed. It turned more a melancholy.

Yet again things have changed...in 2024 ...Ram Temple is a reality !!

Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a perfect foil to his longtime compatriot L K Advani. 

While Advani has been a forceful speaker with cold logic and argument, Vajpayee, a genius orator was a poetic and persuasive with his characteristic humorous style.

"One big difference between Vajpayee and me was his sense of humour. It always gave me complex....Unke samne mein ek rukha-sukha admi raha (Contrast to his humour, I was always dry)," BJP patriarch L K Advani told me only on December 16, 2014. 

At a book release function in 2014,  Advani had said, "After Vajpayee if any one else in the party could give me complex about  public debating is Sushma Swaraj". 

                                                                                

      

When Advani was possibly annoyed with Team Modi

Of course there has been another image of L K Advani - especially after 2013 when he was gradually being sidelined in the BJP even as he was made a member of 'Marg Darshak Mandal' and also the chairman of the Ethics Committee of the Lok Sabha.                    

In 2019 L K Advani did not contest. He was 'benched' by the party ahead of the April-May national election.

His seat Gandhinagar was passed onto Amit Shah, then BJP national president. 

An angry and visibly upset Advani broke his silence on April 9, 2019 -- in his blog titled "Nation First, Party Next, Self Last", in which he said that the BJP had never in the past regarded his critics as "enemies" or "anti-nationals". In the piece, he urged the party to "look back, look ahead and look within" and stressed on "democracy and democratic traditions" within.

 

"The essence of Indian democracy is respect for diversity and freedom of expression. Right from its inception, the BJP has never regarded those who disagree with us politically as our “enemies”, but only as our adversaries. Similarly, in our conception of Indian nationalism, we have never regarded those who disagree with us politically as “anti-national”. 

The party has been committed to freedom of choice of every citizen at personal as well as political level.

Defence of democracy and democratic traditions, both within the Party and in the larger national setting, has been the proud hallmark of the BJP. Therefore BJP has always been in the forefront of demanding protection of independence, integrity, fairness and robustness of all our democratic institutions, including the media. 

Electoral reforms, with a special focus on transparency in political and electoral funding, which is so essential for a corruption-free polity, has been another priority for our Party.

In short, the triad of Satya (truth), Rashtra Nishtha (dedication to the Nation) and Loktantra (democracy, both within and outside the Party) guided the struggle-filled evolution of my Party.

The sum total of all these values constitutes Sanskritik Rashtravad (Cultural Nationalism) and Su-Raj (good governance), to which my Party has always remained wedded. 

The heroic struggle against the Emergengy rule was precisely to uphold the above values.

It is my sincere desire that all of us should collectively strive to strengthen the democratic edifice of India. 

True, elections are a festival of democracy. But they are also an occasion for honest introspection by all the stakeholders in Indian democracy – political parties, mass media, authorities conducting the election process and, above all, the electorate." 

In fact, Mamata Banerjee had 'welcomed' Advani's statement then and said, "The views Advani has expressed about extending democratic courtesis is significant".