New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said two qualities always set BJP patriarch L K Advani apart — his ideological clarity and intellectual sharpness, besides the manner in which he exposed the pseudo-secularism propounded by a large section of the Indian polity for many years.
In a signed op-ed article published in major newspapers on Sunday as Advani enters his 100th year, Modi also said that Advani, the former deputy prime minister, and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee set a remarkable example of cooperating with each other and together they changed the course of Indian politics.
The prime minister said history shows that it is rare for two towering political leaders — Advani and Vajpayee — to work together for several decades, cooperating with each other without becoming competitors.
“Two qualities always set Advani Ji apart as a leader. First, his ideological clarity and intellectual sharpness. This was reflected in his speeches and writings,” he said.
The prime minister said the Jana Sangh (the BJP’s precursor) and BJP resolutions he authored remain worth reading even today, while his interviews were consistently incisive and precise.
“Second, the manner in which he exposed the pseudo-secularism propounded by a large section of the Indian polity for many years,” he said in the article “Bharat Ratna LK Advani Ji at 100”.
Born on November 8, 1927, Advani turns 99 on Sunday and enters the 100th year of his life.
“Shri Lal Krishna Advani Ji enters the hundredth year of his life today, 8th November. This year, his birthday fittingly coincides with Diwali, a festival associated with ‘Prabhu Shri Ram’ and the ‘Diya’ at a time when we are marking 75 years since the inception of the Jana Sangh, the 125th Jayanti of Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee and recently celebrated a hundred years of the RSS,” he said.
The prime minister said there are very few people whose lives have touched so many different chapters of modern India.
He said Advani was born on November 8, 1927, on ‘Dev Deepawali’ and as a youngster in 1947, he experienced the pain of leaving behind his familiar world in Sindh.
Modi said Advani rebuilt his life from scratch without bitterness and this trait of being able to build from scratch, against all odds, has stayed with him throughout,
“It was seen while he was strengthening the Jana Sangh and later building the BJP. His tenures as BJP President saw the Congress falling sharply from 400 to below 200 in 1989 and the BJP becoming the single largest party for the first time in 1996,” he said.
The prime minister said Advani nurtured generations of ‘Karyakartas’ (party workers) and gave the BJP a clear foundation rooted in the principle of ‘Nation First’.
“Advani Ji took up every responsibility with immense diligence. As an RSS ‘Pracharak’, Advani Ji first worked in different parts of Rajasthan. From there, he went to the national capital, where he started working closely with Atal Ji,” he said.
Modi said the Delhi that Advani came to was coming to terms with the horrors of Partition.
“He immersed himself in making the Jana Sangh stronger. In 1967, Advani Ji became the Chairman of the Delhi Metropolitan Council, where he worked alongside the late Vijay Kumar Malhotra Ji (who became Chief Executive Councillor),” he said.
The prime minister said that in 1970, Advani’s parliamentary innings began and his interventions have won appreciation across the political spectrum.
He said Advani made a mark as an MP and later, as Leader of Opposition in both houses and from the treasury benches too.
Despite parliamentary commitments, Advani frequently travelled across India meeting people, he said.
“I vividly recall the 1991 Lok Sabha elections. It was decided that Advani Ji would contest the Lok Sabha elections from two seats, one of which was Gandhinagar,” he said.
Modi said Advani had an old link with Gujarat as his father had settled in Kutch after Partition and Advani had also served as a Rajya Sabha MP from Gujarat.
So, it was a homecoming of sorts, he said.
“Being involved in the BJP organisation, I had the honour of helping prepare his papers and assisting him throughout the campaign,” he said.
The prime minister said the people of Gandhinagar sent Advani to Parliament time and again and, as a voter of Gandhinagar, he also had the honour of voting for Advani on numerous occasions.
“The care and attention he devoted to his constituency is something to learn from,” he said.
Modi said the Emergency was a watershed moment in Advani’s life as he was at the forefront of saving democracy and protecting the Constitution.
“His experiences found their way into his book, ‘A Prisoner’s Scrap-Book.’ One part of that book, titled ‘A Tale of Two Emergencies’, beautifully explained the striking similarities between the events in India starting June 1975 and those in Nazi Germany in 1933,” he said.
The prime minister said Advani was a fiery Opposition leader but an equally excellent administrator and when the Janata Government came to office in 1977, Advani became Minister for Information and Broadcasting.
“It is widely accepted that his work in this department was extremely impactful. As deputy prime minister and one of India’s longest-serving home ministers, he was instrumental in strengthening India’s security apparatus,” he said.
Modi said Advani’s work in improving the lives of the security forces is remembered with great fondness and his unequivocal stand against terrorism ensured India got a tough anti-terror law.
“Of course, an iconic moment in Advani Ji’s life was the Somnath to ‘Ayodhya Rath Yatra’. It changed the course of Indian society for the better,” he said.
The prime minister said he considers it a privilege that he got the opportunity to be involved in this ‘yatra’ from the ideation stage to execution and being present at Somnath when it began was particularly special.
“A yatra can be very demanding, requiring long hours, constant travel, physical endurance and an ability to remain focused despite fatigue. Advani Ji embodied this endurance,” he said.
Modi said he also has memories of the “saddening moments” of Advani’s arrest in Bihar and then, in Gujarat, the BJP withdrew support from the Chimanbhai Patel government.
“With this, a simple message was given, that when it comes to our ideology and the Ram temple, there will never be any compromise,” he said.
The prime minister said many senior BJP leaders and workers took an oath that, come what may, a Ram temple will be built and years later, with the blessings of the people of India, a grand temple for ‘Prabhu Shri Ram’ became a reality in Ayodhya.
“There is so much more of Advani Ji that is outstanding. His simplicity, for example. After the Navnirman Movement, Advani Ji had come to Junagadh and stayed for a month as an ordinary ‘Karyakarta’, preparing the Party for the Assembly elections in which Congress was rejected,” he said.
Modi said Advani has always shown what probity in public life is about.
“He is a voracious reader. Those who have spent time with him know how carefully he goes through newspapers,” he said.
The prime minister said Advani is a big fan of cinema and theatre, and has been an enthusiastic film critic and his sense of history and the need to preserve it is visible in his book, ‘My Country My Life.’
He said Advani always remained in touch with Sindhi culture and another effort he undertook was the popularisation of ‘Sindhu Darshan Puja’ near Leh.
“I myself had been to one Puja with Advani Ji and George Fernandes Ji,” he said.
Modi said any account of Advani’s remarkable journey would be incomplete without mentioning Kamla Advani, his wife.
He said she was a constant source of strength and support throughout his public life.
The prime minister said that growing up in Karachi, Advani could hardly have imagined the path his life would take and in an expression of gratitude, the people of India conferred upon him the ‘Bharat Ratna’ in 2024.
“As Advani Ji enters the hundredth year of his life, I pray that he be blessed with good health and that he continues to inspire us all as he has always done,” he said.
