Does LK Advani's splendid isolation reflect the use-and-throw policy of the Chaddiwalahs?

by Guest Wed Jul 05, 2017 4:32 am

Lal Krishna Advani’s isolation mirrors the retreat of Indian politics. But then that is what the autumn of the patriarch is like in the Hindu varnashrama dharma – he spends a lifetime building a house only to find that when the edifice is ready, he is out of it. Not for him the courtyard, he stays put on the threshold.

Day after day, and days stretch to years, he remains there in the hope that someone from inside will call out to him – if not the son, then the daughter-in-law; if not the grand-daughter, then the grandson. When that doesn’t happen, he himself starts crying out in a hoarse voice. On occasion he even steps inside, but finding the house empty, returns to his threshold spot. Every now and then he threatens to renounce the world and go to Haridwar, but doesn’t budge an inch from the threshold.

In the last three years whenever Advani ji has been seen in public, he has had the demeanour of a man consumed with guilt, who wants to speak out but won’t on account of some unknown fear. Before the television cameras he has been plain evasive. Watch all the videos of the last three years and you will know what I mean. He seems to have lost his voice. It is as though he has been locked up by someone in a glass tank, with the steadily rising water drowning out his screams for help. The camera glides past him for he is absent even when he is present.

Advani is like that jaded shirt that has been permanently hung out to dry, weathering the barbs of rain, the shriveling heat of the sun and collecting dirt. One day it falls to the ground patchy with dust and slush. The shirt knows that the one who washes has other shirts too – new ones at that.

I wonder, does Advani cry when he is alone? Does his body heave with sobs? Does he scream, call out for somebody when the walls of the room seem to be closing in on him? Does he pace around in his room every now and then or, hearing the footfalls of fear, does he quietly go back to his chair? Does anyone call out to dada apart from his daughter? Does any chief minister, central minister or ordinary politician pay him a visit?

These days every minister is quick to tweet photographs of his/her stately progress from the bath to the food-bite; he/she even tweets pictures of birthday bashes of politicians from other parties. These ministers have the whole world on their timeline, but not Advani. It’s an open secret. The message is clear – meet Advani at your own peril; to meet Advani now is to become him.

When he wakes up to the loneliness of isolation every morning, what is the image that swims before his eyes – the present or the past? Does he immerse himself in newspapers all day or stare unseeingly at news channels? Does he wait for the telephone to ring?

But who would want to meet Advani – he doesn’t chant Modi’s name and, more importantly, there is nobody chanting his name. More to the point, why does he not chant Modi’s name if that is what it takes to remain relevant? If his stance signals a personal protest or rebellion, then why doesn’t he place it on record?...

Think about it – the Congress may have suffered the loss of power, but it is Advani whose name and existence has suffered a total erasure. Sonia Gandhi continues to have a presence in Indian politics. Witness the fact that as soon as the NDA presidential nominee’s name is decided, the prime minister calls up the president of the party he wants to deliver India from. I wonder if he telephoned Advani ji as well. While India is still not Congress-free, today’s BJP has succeeded in becoming Advani-free. The party is willing to accommodate politicians from the Congress, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party, but not its founder, Lal Krishna Advani.

https://thewire.in/153909/lk-advani-narendra-modi-bjp-ravish-kumar-presidential-election/

by smArtha Thu Jul 06, 2017 11:54 am

Chaddiless brigade may not get it but Chaddis need to be used and thrown away once they are torn or worn out.

by Vakavaka Pakapaka Thu Jul 06, 2017 12:59 pm

smArtha wrote:Chaddiless brigade may not get it but Chaddis need to be used and thrown away once they are torn or worn out.

Sikularists shed crocodile tears for Advani. If Soonya were smart, she would have suggested Advani as the opposition's candidate for president. Some BJP MPs and MLAs would have trouble not to vote for him creating some trouble for Modi.......

by Seva Lamberdar Thu Jul 06, 2017 1:05 pm

Vakavaka Pakapaka wrote:
smArtha wrote:Chaddiless brigade may not get it but Chaddis need to be used and thrown away once they are torn or worn out.
Sikularists shed crocodile tears for Advani. If Soonya were smart, she would have suggested Advani as the opposition's candidate for president. Some BJP MPs and MLAs would have trouble not to vote for him creating some trouble for Modi.......

Good point. Congress should have nominated him as the Opposition's candidate for President.

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Does LK Advani's splendid isolation reflect the use-and-throw policy of the Chaddiwalahs?

Does LK Advani's splendid isolation reflect the use-and-throw policy of the Chaddiwalahs?

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